The Witch of Sicily
by LePetitDuchess
Summary: There were still whispers, rumors that the witch of Sicily remained in that forest, cursing all who would come near. It was a place many feared to tread, treated almost as sacred ground. Only fools would dare incite the wrath of the witch by entering that place. Only fools...and pirates. (Spain/Romano)
1. Secret Garden

**A/N: So hey. I'm not dead. Yeah. So... uh...this was edited pretty recently. So for those of you just coming in, this might be a bit awkward because the next chapters might not be as 'in-sync'. The plot will be comprehensible, it's just that you'll feel a bit of dissonance I guess because some wording changed. I'll be slowly re-writing chapters. So for new people, this might be a bit strange, but it'll make sense. To older readers, yeah, it shouldn't be too much of a hassle. I'll write new chapters while editing. **

**But anyways, cool. I hope you like this. And I hope if you're new and just happened to stumble on this that you'll stick around. **

**Disclaimer: Nope. Don't own. APH. Nope. **

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**Witch of Sicily**

_Prologue_

_..._

Three travelers, on their way to the seaside city of Trapani, decide to stop for the night at the edge of the Nadirean Forest. A motley group, they sit underneath a fair willow tree, branches leaning over them and creating a lovely curtain of green. They decide to set camp, ignoring the unnatural chill of the forest ground. They go about their regular duties, cleaning themselves and setting down their bags.

Before long, they are sitting on the forest floor, using makeshift seats of stones and fallen logs. A small fire sits in the center of camp. All three travelers sit around it, keeping themselves warm and eating soup. They're all fairly young, no doubt going to the wealthy city of Trapani in order to make their fortune.

The youngest of them all, a fair lass with messy brown locks, leans forward and whispers. "Hey, have you heard the rumors about this place?"

The eldest, rolls his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, we've heard 'em all. Something 'bout a witch right?"

The middle child hears the word and widens his eyes. He shivers and stammers. "W-w-w-w-witches…?"

The youngest smiles vindictively whilst the eldest rolls his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose. "That's right. Legend has it, there's a witch that hides in these very woods…." She makes several childish gestures. Illuminated by the firelight, her expressions do appear garish. Add to that the ominous dark forest and the occasional snap of a twig branch. Terrifying.

"Stop with the games, Katerina, he's scared shitless already. Leave him be!" The eldest raps the girl sharply on the forehead.

Katerina frowns, crossing her arms. "Hmph, and why shouldn't I tell him? It's not like it's false!" Her eyes flicker to the quivering child. "Besides, Marcello has to man up somehow."

"Marcello is perfectly fine and doesn't need any of your meddling." The eldest sits up and stretches. "I'm done eating so I'm going to sleep first. We want to get going to Trapani first crack of dawn so when you're done, go straight to sleep." He narrows his eyes at them. "Make sure you clean up your plates, Katerina, Marcello. I will not be cleaning up after you. I'm not your ma."

The two repeat the proper response, "Yes, Giacomo…" They watch as the eldest heads to the far side of the camp, resting his head against his pack and wrapping a blanket around himself. Just before he settles properly into place, he uses his fingers to point at them, and then at his own eyes.

"No scary stories. capiche?" Katerina groans. Marcello nods. "Kay. Night." He turns around, away from the fire. His snores can be heard a few minutes later.

Marcello returns to his soup, looking at as if it's the most fascinating thing in the world. Katerina slides next to him. Ignoring the bright blush spreading across the bridge of his nose, she whispers to him. "So…Do you want to hear it or not?"

"U-um…b-b-but your brother said-"

"To hell with what he said. He's not the boss of me!" The nervous young man looks back at the sleeping man with apprehensive eyes. When he sees that Giacomo has not stirred he sighs. Katerina looks at him expectantly. Biting his lip, he gives in. "O-ok…b-but only a little bit!"

The girl grins. "Don't be so scared. After all, it's good to know what happened in these woods, how can you ever be prepared for the journey otherwise?" She gets up and sits across from him and near the fire, just for dramatic lighting. "Many, many years ago…there was a little cottage that sat at the edge of the woods…"

_A man leaves the house, carrying a hefty bag on his back as he enters town. He's a kind-looking fellow, with bright amber eyes and a warm smile. _

"Where there lived a medicine man, his wife and two children. They were a lovely family…except for…"

_The man turns around and is greeted by his lovely wife and a young boy no taller than her hip. The boy, with soft eyes like his father's, hugs his father. The wife, with a beauty comparable to the angels, kisses her husband. He waves them goodbye, but his eyes narrow. He re-enters the cottage and calls out for someone. _

"You see, the two children were twins. Two boys. One as pure and sweet as a lamb. And the other, while pleasant of face, was cruel and black of heart."

_The man ducks into the backyard, where the rhubarb and mint are. There is even a tree, imported from a faraway land as a present from a grateful foreigner. Underneath that tree is a young boy. When he looks up, bitter gold eyes bleed into warm hazel. The man calls out again, his arms outstretched. The boy stabs the ground with his spade and runs over, throwing himself into the other's arms. _

"The first child was beloved by all. He was kind-hearted and such a peaceful spirit. All those who set eyes on him loved him. He was showered with kindness and affection. On the other hand, the second child was cold and mean-spirited, cursing all those who passed him. It wasn't long before he was set apart from the rest, outcast and alone. Some say the family was cursed, having conceived such horrible offspring."

_The boy clings to his father tightly, tears rolling down his cheeks and his head shaking as he refuses to let his father leave. The man sighs, patting him on the head and kneeling down to meet the boy's eyes. He reaches into his shirt, pulling out a blue-beaded rosary. He places the rosary into the child's hands, patting the boy's cheek. He mouths a goodbye before tapping his forehead against his son's. The boy puffs up his cheeks, rubbing away stray tears to smack his father on the forehead back. The man rubs his head before throwing back his head to laugh. _

"The village well…the village was a fisherman's village, sitting right on the seashore. They relied on the mercy of the tides more than the kisses of the land. They hoped…that with time they would grow. That they would be more than just a cluster of docks and homes, that they'd be great. But…there were days when the harvest just wasn't enough, days where the traders just didn't come. It wasn't enough. And it wasn't long before a time came where the haul was bad, the harvest…paltry.

"Times were hard. Harder than they had ever been before. Fewer and fewer people entered to do trade. And those that did, were refugees or pirates. Many people died, including the kind medicine man and his wife. The children, both of them unfortunately, survived. They clung to life with the medicine man's father, their grandfather. A few more months of this haggard lifestyle, the people grew even more angry, more bitter. They began to say that the war was not the only reason the town suffered."

_A boy sits at the edge of the forest, whispering special things, special blessings and special prayers. He holds in his lap a leather-bound book. It looks battered and torn in some places, but the boy handles it with the utmost care. At the corner of the book, the name, Gabriella, is written in beautiful script. The boy hugs it to his chest and smiles to himself. He looks at the ground. The rose bush, previously wilting, lifts its heads off of the ground, curling up towards him. He smiles. _

_A sound catches his attention and the smile disappears, replaced by his customary frown. He sees a pair of boys. Their faces are grim, accusing. They are lean from hunger, but they are taller than he is, and stronger. They walk over and push him. From the mouths spew poison and they kick him and beat him. The battered book falls to the ground and falls apart, pages flying away. _

_The boy clenches his teeth, clutching blue beads wrapped around his hand. They help fracture his wrist when the tall boy steps on him. _

"And the boy…well…it didn't take long for the villagers to realize what was the cause of their misfortunes. Or whom. That boy…he spoke to strange things, whispered awful secrets. They say he made deals with the devil and learned secrets and words he never should have known. There were rumors…rumors that the medicine man and his wife never did listen to those accusations because the child had overpowered them with the force of his mind. That he kept them all in a spell."

_An old man sits at a table, sighing and praying to a picture of two young people, holding hands and smiling. With him sits a young boy, praying dutifully beside him. The door slams open and the boy enters, his face dark with tears and bruises. He holds a book, badly held together by roots and vines. He does not answer his grandfather's questioning gaze, only running to his room without another word. The old man follows, but no matter how much he moves his lips, the door does not open._

"But as they had no proof, the priests refused to call for an exorcist or a hunter to extract the boy. And it went on for some time. The villagers were suspicious yes, but they wouldn't dare go against the word from a man of God. So they waited, biding their time.

"The moment came when a young missionary, fresh from the Vatican, arrived to that small, seaside town. And this young man, they say, was none other than the great Light of the South, Nunzio, himself. As the great Father Nunzio entered the village, he heard of the rumors and decided to investigate the allegations of witchcraft and devilry."

_A young man, no older than twenty-three, walked along the edges of the forest. He peers through the bushes, eventually reaching a small opening in the forest. There in the center, is the young boy he was searching for. Watching from afar, the priest sees little of the horrible child the village describes._

_But the devil wears many faces. He steels himself, before hesitantly entering the circle. In that moment, however, he sees it. _

_The flowers surrounding the boy begin to tilt and shake. Then…voices. Low and tired. So soft that he cannot understand the words. The flowers that lay in this grove begin to burn, from which their withered corpses produce a foul smelling liquid. _

_The boy turned, his eyes shifting from hazel to an unnatural gold. _

"After meeting the boy, he instantly recognized the signs of witchcraft and called for a hunt. Soon enough, the people took to their torches, desperate. They cut down whatever they could, picking down even their own homes, to create a massive bonfire in the middle of the town's square. From there, they hunted down the young boy. The old man and the young boy, who had been beguiled by the witch's spells, were set aside, as the witch was taken to the square.

"They carried out all the ceremonial rites, cleansed the cottage and the town of blood and purified it. Then…then they prepared to destroy the witch, to burn him at the stake when…"

_The people are running about, frenzied. There is a huge crowd surrounding a large pile of wood. A wooden cross sits in the middle of it all. At the edge of the circle is a filthy cage, small and cramped. Two men, dressed in heavy clothing, are led by a young priest. He leads them to the cage, carrying his bible and reciting verses. The people make crosses over themselves. Their eyes are hungry. _

_The two men reach in, dragging out a thin, limp figure. He is unrecognizable under the blood. The boy can barely lift his head and is hardly conscious. His wrists are bound, so the men carry him roughly by the shoulders. The boy cannot stand, so they drag him through the crowd, his feet leaving bloody trails in the dirt. _

_The people part easily. They hiss and curse. They spit and scream. They begin to stomp. They begin to chant. The boy lifts up his head. His eyes are charged with panic. The fear in his eyes drives the clamor. They begin to throw whatever is on hand, rocks, dirt, anything. They tie him to the stake. The priest takes out a torch. He drops it. The fire spreads quickly and the boy screams._

_Then all sound disappears. The town is completely silent — as if some strange power had stolen all of their voices. _

_Just as the fire touches the child's toes, a loud, inhuman cry resounded from the forest. Trees bent back, ripping through straight through the middle. The sound, that awful sound… grew in intensity, as if the very forest was opening its mouths to scream. _

_The stake's fire blows out. It seems that the stars and moon have disappeared. The town has entered a period of complete and utter darkness. _

"Then, the great Nunzio prayed. The light from his prayers pierced the darkness, and let shine the moon and stars. But in the end, even with Father Nunzio's help, the villagers couldn't find the witch. He disappeared. Many men ventured through the forest, but none have prevailed. In the end, they either lost their minds…or never returned. Even now, the church continues to hunt him — the bounty rising every year…or so they say.

"Meanwhile, the village enjoyed many years of prosperity. It was almost as if they could pretend that crises had never existed. The town became a great city, almost like a seaside utopia. But to this day, the forest is a place many fear to tread and is treated almost like sacred ground.

"None but fools enter the witch's domain….But…they say if you sit at the edge of the forest — like we are now — you can hear the cry of the trees, and see the Witch of Sicily himself, watching and waiting for foolish humans to enter so he can take his revenge…" Then all of a sudden, the fire blew out. Marcello looks ready to scream his head off and jumps over to Katerina, clinging to her arm. "T-That's not funny, Kat!" he whispers sharply, his eyes searching for witches to jump out from the dark.

"Hah, you're such a baby!" The girl laughs loudly. "Jesus, I didn't think you'd get that riled up, you should have seen your face!" She clutches her sides and then stands up, pushing more dirt over the fire pit.

"Bu-but…Wh-what if the story's true?"

She scoffs. "God, you're such a baby. Of course there's no such thing. It's just a legend. Obviously. Trapani had a pretty shady past, everybody knows that. People just like to make up that kind of fancy-schmancy history to build hype. People love a good ghost story after all." She throws out a blanket, then lays down, absolutely content. "It was just a story idiot, just go to sleep."

"A-Are you sure?" Hesitant, the boy lays down beside her. At a respectful distance of course. If never were to wake up curled next to Katerina, Giacomo would kill him…He shivered.

"Yes!" she groaned, "It's just a load of bullshit I heard from the last town. Now lemme sleep…" Marcello stays silent, listening in the dark as his companion's breathing begins to slow and relax. Before long, she begins to snore softly. The story, while kinda of scary…saddens him. A child, being burnt at the stake… What an awful way to die…

He is about to fall asleep when he hears it. His eyes flick open and automatically, he grabs Katerina's arm tightly. The girl wakes up, "Ow…what's going on?"

"Shhhh!" he whispers furiously. The girl furrows her brow, but turns white when she too begins to hear it. The tortured, piercing cry of something not altogether human. It's quiet, nearly inaudible, but now it has risen, growing so loudly it is as if whatever it is…it's right behind them…

Giacomo wakes up. "Alright what are you idiots up to-"

"Shhhhh!" The two younger children use their hands to clamp the man's mouth and they wait. The cry becomes louder and louder. A great crack behind them makes them turn. The middle of the tree that they took shelter under, begins to form cracks. It leans back. And it screams.

They scream. In a few moments, the three travelers are gone, screaming as they run as far as their legs can take them.

As they disappear, the tree stops. It stiffens and pulls itself back together, sewing the hole in its trunk neatly with invisible stitches.

From the darkness, enters a dark figure. The stranger threw back his hood, revealing striking hazel eyes.

"Stupid bitches."

So sayeth the legendary Witch of Sicily.

…

* * *

…

**Chapter 1**

Lovino Vargas woke up sweating. Shit… He looked down at his hands. Still there. Still okay. His legs. Not black. Still flesh. He's alive. It's fine. He's okay. Everything is fine.

It's okay. It's okay.

_It's not my fault. It's not my fault. _

His trembling hands searched desperately for it. Patting the side-table a few times, he managed to come across a broken, blue-beaded rosary. He wrapped it around his hand, not bothering to look at the pinprick scars on his skin, as he held it close and prayed. To who he didn't know. It wasn't to God that's for sure. Just…just to somebody, you know? Somebody…anybody…

A few minutes of this and he dropped his clasped hands. This was stupid. He was being stupid. He dropped back against the bed, curling up beneath the sheets. He didn't want to get up. Was there even a point? He was just going to do the same thing over and over again…

"Cici!"

Step One: Wake up and water the flowers.

"Cici, baby please come out here!"

Against his body's protests, he dragged himself out of bed. Of course she had to use that tone with him. He was pretty sure that if she could convince people she was human, she could probably become dictator of the world. Or something something. Not bothering to get dressed properly, he walked with nothing on but that oversized tunic. Damn did he hate this thing.

It took him a moment to orient himself, rubbing his eyes to get used to the fact that yes, this was his kitchen and no, that was not his watering can. As usual, he stubbed his toe on that stupid plank. He hopped around angrily before cursing the ground and feebly smacking it. It popped into place but he knew sooner or later it would pop out again. Damn it he needed to fix it. But of course he knew he would forget about it until it was already tomorrow. When he stubbed his toe again.

He pulled himself outside, shivering at the chill. "It's not even dawn yet, stupid bastards!" he yelled.

"Just hurry up Cici! Time is money you know!"

Lovino scowled. "Shut the fuck up already!" Hefting his watering can over his shoulder, he filled it up from the stream surrounding the clearing. He walked to the back of the cottage, reaching a large plot of aconite growing angrily next to a patch of cheery chrysanthemums. He rubbed his eyes, feeling the sun slowly creeping up behind him. "God the things I do for you guys…"

"We'll appreciate it every single time you do it, darling." Chrysanthemums laid themselves on his back, petals kissing his neck. Soon enough, buds transformed into fingers, roots into legs. A pretty woman dressed in a simple green frock and wearing a pretty red ribbon in her hair stood before him, a delicate hand placed on his shoulder. "Sweetheart, are you doing okay today?" Her voice was soft, crooning. When he was younger, he always loved that voice. But nowadays, it made him feel rather frustrated with the coddling sprite.

He swatted the hand away. "I'm doing fucking amazing. Now scoot so I can get the smoker bastard." She frowned when he cursed but leaned over him, hugging his arm as she cooed over how he cute he looked with a watering can. Like he had fucking jumped over the moon really.

This time water poured onto purple aconite buds. From there, the flowers grew into a man, taller than Lovino (goddammit) and wearing simple villager's outfit, coat and all. The only thing remarkable about him was the blonde hair that stuck up (fucking weird ass bastard) and a blue and white striped scarf. "Next time, put your can at a different angle. The can is heavy so blah blah blah blah…."

Lovino tuned out as Abel the Bastard began his lecture. Like hell he was listening to the logistics of how to draw water and drop it again. Anri, however, was completely engrossed in the conversation, adding in her own two cents about what she thought of proper watering technique.

Step two. Be lectured.

"And that's how you talk to begonias…Cici, are you even listening?" Lovino, still in a sort of sleepy daze, didn't respond until the bastard blew a smoke ring into his face.

The young human coughed, waving away the smoke. "That fucking stinks…Damn it, don't blow that shit in front of me!" Abel looked at him with a vaguely amused expression.

"What? Smoking is the mark of a real man. And it's not like it's bothering anyone that matters." The Italian twitched, and made a move to kick the smirking sprite in the shins. But the chrysanthemums beat him to it.

"Brother!" Anri smacked him on the back of the head, "Don't be mean!" Then she tugged his scarf close, whispering, "Don't you know children take after their parents actions?"

"Che…And you're the model mother —ow, ow! Guh, I'm stopping, I'm stopping already!" It wasn't any use. The sprite had entered 'mother hen' mode and was currently slapping the man relentlessly. The female sprite's sharp green eyes landed on the wooden pipe in her brother's hands.

"And who did you get that pipe from?" She ripped out of his grasp. "Don't you know you shouldn't be doing things like this? It's bad for you — I thought I raised you better!"

The aconite groaned, "Not this again…Look, I'm not a damn pansy…And I'm the older one, idiot—ow, damn it stop hitting me —- shit, put that spade down…"

"You jerk-!" Abel's eyes widened. He grabbed his pipe back, shoving it into his pocket before making a run for it. Soon enough, Anri was chasing her so-called 'little' brother around the garden. "You're such a meanie you…you…jerk!"

"Shit, stop! Cici, help!" He put his hands up, narrowly dodging a shoe aimed for his head. And before you say anything, like a shoe doesn't hurt that much, the shoe hit a tree and left a dent. A motherfucking dent. So obviously, Lovino did the only logical thing. He stood up, took his water ing can, and walked away. "Hey, don't just leave—shit!" The Italian promptly ignored the ensuing cries. He threw his watering can onto the ground, letting it sink a bit into the mud. He considered breaking routine for a bit…

Step Three, Change into actual clothes.

He picked at the end of his nightshirt. He really ought to wear something a bit warmer when he went to sleep. Even if the sun was coming up, it was still really, really cold in just this stupid shirt and shorts. Stupid _Nonno_, can't even get a shirt that fits him right. And as much as he wanted to say otherwise, he definitely was not going to grow beyond this.

If you ever attempt to make him repeat this, you _will _get a punch to the throat.

Really.

He went back into his room, carefully stepping over the piles of books and papers left on the ground, before picking out his usual clothes. They were all shoved into a dresser in the corner, most of them untouched. Hell, he didn't know why _Nonno_ delivered these kinds of things to him. He definitely was not that big. Or that tall. Or…just —- just shut up and stop laughing okay?

Aside from his simple outfits, he didn't understand why his old man brought over all this…nice stuff. It wasn't like he was going to have a tea party or some stupid shit like that. The only thing he really cared to wear from that pile of expensive stuff was the dark blue coat, the only reason because it seemed…witch-ish. Suited his purposes just fine.

Speaking of purposes… Lovino got out of his room, his eyes dropping to the two packs he uh…borrowed from those idiots sitting at the edge of the forest. They never seemed to learn. All the better for him though. It shortened the amount of trips the old man and his doppelgänger had to make to get over here. They all seemed to think that they could get him to come out if they asked nicely. And then when he did show up, they were scared shitless an ran off, conveniently leaving all their stuff behind too. Meh. Losing all their shit was a lot better than what would happen if they went any deeper…

He was too nice to those bastards. Fucking villagers. Idiots. All of them. They didn't deserve a single thing. Let 'em burn in hell for all he cared!

Step Four, Scavenge

He walked out, back into the main room and picked up the two bags set in the corner. He dumped whatever was inside, taking inventory. Needle and thread. Rations of jerky and dried fruit. An old diary (Jesus, did this guy think about anything besides this Katerina girl? Talk about creepy…). Some clothes (They were actually too small for him). A box of matches (Score!) And…

"What the…" He picked out an old letter.

_Dear Giacomo, _

_Of course you should come! We need plenty of work for you here now that the Festival of Miracles is coming up. It's coming up in a month. Crazy right? But it's fun, I swear! You remember the festival right? They have a whole bunch of lights set up and the town is all decorated in pretty lights and ribbons… They're also starting a huge bonfire set up at the end of the day this time and it's going to be absolutely gorgeous! So look forward to it. Moving is a good thing! And hey, if you make a good impression, maybe my dad will let you guys stick around at our place. _

_Until then, _

_Elena _

What the fuck was this? How long…? Lovino stood up. He didn't care how scarce matches were. He struck one and threw it into the fireplace. His hand quivered a bit, but he crumpled the paper into a ball and threw it into the fireplace.

Fucking village. Fucking Trapani. Fuck all of them. "Why do I even bother…? You know what? Fuck this, I'm not going to do any of their shit for them!" he ranted. He picked up his notes.

Small pox had been getting troublesome and his dipshit of a brother wanted him to come up with an ointment and _be good and nice_ and shit. People were starting to get sick from some of the travelers dropping in so often. Well…served them right. A fucking bonfire now too? Didn't they get the point across already? With the fucking burning dolls and all the offerings to _Signore Vargas _and the _Lamb of Trapani?_

He crumpled the notes, ripping them out one-by-one from his notebook and letting them pile up on the ground. "Bastards…bastards! Take this, you stupid fucking…"

There was a knock at the door. Lovino looked up. Speak of the fucking devil (or was it angel?), guess who it was standing out there? He didn't even need to look outside to know who it was. And sure enough, letting himself in — because whoop-dee-doo who gives a fuck about privacy? — was Feliciano. Anri and Abel peered in from behind him.

_"__F-fratello? _U-um…" The idiot was wearing something simple, old. If anything, it looked similar to Lovino's. Just the eyes. If they could just switch eyes then maybe…

"You fucking idiots, what did I tell you about knocking?!" He stood up, stomping over and just ready to scream in that idiot's face about privacy and learning.

Feliciano's face crumpled and little tears began to appear at the corner of his eyes. He pulled up his basket, as if to protect his face. "I-I…I brought you some pasta?…I-It's your favorite…" He sniffled. "I'm sorry for being late! I-If that's why you're angry, then I'm sorry for leaving you alone!"

Lovino deflated and in the end, he gave in to the impending hug of doom. The moment he relaxed, the dope dropped the basket and latched onto him. Like a leech really. "Jesus! You saw me last…last…"

"It's been a month!" he wailed. "It's been a month since I've seen you _fratellooooo! _I missed you so, so much! Did you miss me, ve~? Did you? Everyone's starting that horrible party thing again and I…I…It's so horrible!"

"Damn it, Feli, I just cleaned this shirt!" Oh god, he could _feel_ the snot pouring on. Ugh. Like hell he was going to wear this for the rest of the day. He needed a bath. He could feel his brother blow on his shirt. A long, long bath.

"Oh Cici…is this what you were upset about?" Anri shook her head and spread out her arms. Lovino tried to resist, pulling away. Her eyes grew watery. "My poor baby!"

"Oh no…hey, I'm fine-!" Too late. Anri jumped him, crushing him and Feliciano in one nice sandwich. And now…now this was officially the hug of doom. He could feel his ribs breaking. "B-Bastard, do something!" he gasped. But the aconite just shrugged his shoulders, leaning against the doorframe.

"Not my problem." He puffed out a ring of smoke while Lovino let out a string of curses.

"Fuck you bastard! I'm going to fucking kill you-!" Okay. Maybe he wouldn't kill him. But he'd leave him outside and not water him for a while. Hell, he wouldn't even pluck his weeds. Take that — stupid bastard!

…No he wasn't scared! He…he could totally kick this guy's ass if he wanted to. If he could just…breathe for a second…

"Oh darling…it's okay! We're here for you!" Anri cried, somehow crushing him even more. Was that a snap? Shit were those his ribs?

"Alright…alright…just let me the fuck go!" How was Feliciano perfectly fine? She was practically suffocating him! Both of them!

But the stupid idiot just shook his head. "But we're not done with hug therapy yet, ve~!"

Step Five, Be crushed by hugging trauma

And that…that was a day in the life of a badass witch.

Really. He shouldn't have gotten up this morning.

...

* * *

...

Lovino dropped down onto the beach in a huff. Okay, maybe it wasn't so much of a beach as it was a little cave kind of thing with a teensy weeny strip of sand. It was the only place he could go to to get away from…well…everything. The forest especially.

Not like he had anything against the forest. But…he just…just needed to be away from there. From her.

If he squinted, he could just see the edge of the town, little lights from the docks twinkling in the distance. Maybe a few ships if they were big enough. But right now, he was hardly interested in the trash that wandered in this shithole of a town. Seaside utopia his ass. More like oceanside nightmare.

Sometimes, he could pretend that he wasn't here. That he wasn't trapped in some cesspool of a forest that ate whatever came by. He was sailing away from this place…to somewhere far, far away.

Yeah right. Keep dreaming.

The pasta Feliciano served was amazing. As usual. The kid was probably the best chef in all of Italy. Any other cook seemed to pale in comparison. It was sad that the idiot went into priesthood instead of cooking, because he was sure that the guy would be a lot more successful that way. But of course, the little dumbass was as idealistic as every other Vargas family member.

_Things can change! I-If I join the church then maybe someday…you can go outside again… _

Idiot.

After Feliciano was done cooking and eating up his very precious spare time (yes, he was very much busy ranting and raving about idiots), he left —taking the finished medicine with him. His brother's visits seemed to be getting shorter and shorter.

Not like he cared or anything.

He threw himself on his back, watching angry grey clouds drift in and out. It was probably gonna rain soon. He closed his eyes. He'd have loved to just sleep out here, where there wasn't any of the kind of shit waiting for him back home. Sucks that he couldn't.

Last time he actually spent the night here, Abel and Anri grounded him. Literally. Their roots latched onto his ankles and he wasn't able to leave the cottage grounds for weeks. Even when he was an adult now, the two sprites seemed to think he was still a kid. A-and it wasn't like he was scared of them or anything! But, seeing as he was up against old sprite guys with superpowers, it 's probably smart thinking to not get beaten to a pulp and just do what they said. Practicality bitches, deal with it.

So he sat there, trying not to nod off and watch the stars —- when he heard something.

It rolled and smacked against the shore. The waves were pushing it in. Heavy and wet. Lovino, at first, waved it off as driftwood and continued to ignore it. But it kept on going and going and going and… "Damn it, what the fuck?" He sat up, scowling at the beach as he scanned the sand. On the shore was a dark figure, lying near the waves and covered in some odd slimy substance. It didn't move, didn't make a sound.

Immediately his mind went to some sea monster abomination, but quickly put it out. He was not going to lose his shit over some pansy ass seaweed monster. Who could be five times bigger than him. And have claws. And teeth. He shook his head and inched towards the lump. It was probably dead. And if anything, he could scream in run into the forest and he'd be safe. Gingerly, he picked up a piece of driftwood lying haphazardly in the sand and poked the thing.

A few good jabs said — yeah dude, it's dead and it's cool to approach.

Which was when he realized 'it' was not an 'it' but a 'he'. And somehow, against all odds, he was alive.

Sorta.

Bullet wounds in the right shoulder and left leg. Matching cuts passing through his chest. Damn. Open wounds on salty, salty ocean? Shit must have hurt like a bitch. He leaned in closer patting the man's face. Clammy. Feverish. And … ugh…sticky from drying salt. He'd seen a few corpses run up shore before. But none had ever made it…well…alive.

This was going to be a problem. That person would no doubt know of a new person coming into the forest. And even if she didn't immediately and easily, she would rip down his cottage and squeeze the answers out of him. He shivered. No. No, it was okay. They made a pact after all. He left her alone and offered sacrifices that _he_ chose, she left him alone and kept the barrier strong. As he dragged the man higher upshore, his eyes adjusted more and he noticed the man was wearing a…

"Pirate's coat…" he snarled. Of course. Of course a bastard like that would survive this kind of thing. Goddamned cockroaches. Just as bad as the church frankly. He didn't know why-

_Medical neutrality. It's our duty to help people whoever they are, whenever we can in the best way possible. _

Bullshit. Sounds like a one way ticket to heaven if you asked him.

_We're healers Lovino, not gods. We do what we can for everyone, then hope for the best. _

Well fuck you voice! "His kind's the reason you're fucking dead!" He dropped the body and walked towards the tree line. "It's all his fault, all their fault!" He smashed through the underbrush, ignoring the wooden fingers clinging to his coat, begging. "Don't touch me…Don't tell me that it's fine…"

_I don't regret what I did…. _

"Well…well I do! I fucking…I'm the reason…" He shook his head and laughed bitterly. He looked up at the old trees. They loomed over him, concerned. "Yeah…yeah I've gone nuts haven't I? Talking to old and broken things…" He sat down, curling up his legs and burying his face in his lap.

_Please? For me? _

…

* * *

…

He was sweating buckets. Damn the forest. Damn the road. Damn himself for being such a fucking idiot. It felt like years had passed. It took all he could to keep walking with this son-of-a-bitch on his back. When he finally reached the edge of his own cottage clearing, he thought he was going to cry. He ignored his garden's questions, only focusing on getting to at least the tree near his cottage before anything else. At its base, swinging his pipe around grumpily, was Abel. The aconite sprite looked pretty pissed. Or as pissed as flowers could seem. Without a spray of sunlight or Verle water, Abel returned to his flora form.

Even without a face, Lovino could see he was pretty pissed. "Cici, who the hell is that?" The herbalist came over, placing the load as gently as he could on the ground. He wiped the sweat off of his forehead.

"This guy's…my new patient."

...

* * *

...

**A/N: I hope this is cleaner. And nicer. And stuff... MEH Please leave a review. Or a favorite. Or follower thing. Or all of the above. Just a suggestion yo. But I appreciate you dropping by and managing to get this far. You awesome reader you. **


	2. The Gentleman Pirate

**Mein Gott this chapter was waaaayy to long. I had to actually cut this one in half and it's still really long. Hope you can forgive me. Aside from that I'll be fixing Chapter 1 because I realized there are some notes missing that may have helped in deciphering who was who. Just so you know, Abel = Netherlands, Anri = Belgium**

**That's right a lot of their names start with the letter 'A' but I'm sticking with it. I'll add the next part of this as soon as I make a couple of changes. Let me know if you're fine with the chapters getting longer because they will be getting longer and I can either split them up for you guys are just drop it here uncut. **

**And as for updates, I will try to update weekly on Fridays. Note the word,** **"try". **

**And for 07GhostLuvr811: Thanks for reviewing and I'm glad you're liking the story so far. Gonna reply to you here because you don't have the PM thingy approved and stuff. But anyways, my thanks goes for the rest of you who reviewed/favorited/followed this story. Take a virtual cookie. **

**I hope this chappie is acceptable, and not completely botched. And that ends this really long author's note. **

* * *

**Chapter 2: The Gentleman Pirate of the Seas**

"Cici, who is that?" Abel was the first to greet him this time and he did not look pleased in the slightest. He was twirling his pipe in-between his vines, and wrapping around the oak tree that stood in the cottage's front yard. Since it was nighttime, the sprite returned to his aconite and was planted in a pot that sat comfortably at the base of the tree. Anri was most likely in the kitchen, as the sprites could possess their respective plants at will, wherever it was, so long as it was from the original seed. So she probably jumped from her rooted plant in the garden to the potted one in the house, as she always did when night fell. Potted plants had a lot more mobility than grounded ones, so they possessed those more often than grounded ones. More often than not, it annoyed the hell out of him.

"Just somebody I found on the beach," Lovino finally managed to get out as he dragged the injured man over. The pirate was pretty heavy, though the additional weight was probably due to the fact that his clothes were drenched. It took nearly every ounce of his strength to drag the man here, what the hell does he eat? This guy better be fucking grateful. "I could use some help bastard!" he huffed, trying his damnedest to drag the man at least to the front door. He ended up dropping the man as soon as he reached Abel.

The aconite sighed, although it sounded more like leaves blowing, "Fine, let's get your boyfriend situated."

"What..? Why would he be my fucking boyfriend?!" Lovino screeched.

Abel shook his heads er…buds. He unfurled his vines and took over the dragging process, with the gentleness of fat bear. "Don't fucking treat him like that, he's injured!"

"Yeah, yeah, just stop yelling already!" This time, he shifted the plant shifted his grip so the roots were supporting his torso and his legs.

"Just leave the guy on my bed; I'll deal with him later." Abel grunted in response, crawling off. "And be careful! I don't want you fucking him up after I dragged him through the whole damn forest!" All Lovino could think of, despite what he always said, was how grateful he was that he put the stupid sprite into a pot because Abel was able to use his roots as legs to move. It looked a little strange, a pot of flowers that could walk and talk and was carrying a fully grown man with ease. It wasn't hard to see how people would automatically label him as a freak if this was the company he kept around…

Anri leaned forward in her pot over the kitchen counter, "What's going on, Cici?" The female sprite had apparently been working on a peach tartlet before Lovino came barging back in. And by peach tartlet, he meant a waffle with peaches on top. Anri wasn't really good at baking anything aside from waffles…It was pretty ironic however, that she was much more adept at cooking when she was in her plant form, her vines more used to movement, than the human body she wore in the day.

"It's nothing. Just found some injured guy on the beach…Dammit, have you seen the needle and thread?" He began pushing aside papers on his desk, he knew he had put it somewhere…Anri tapped him on the shoulder, unfurling her roots to show him a spool and needle.

"Silly Cici, you left it in the cabinet with the meats! What were you doing in there?"

"Just…ugh nothing you need to know!" He puffed his cheeks and turned the other way when she tried to pinch his cheeks. "God, leave me alone I'm busy!" And with that, he grabbed a plateful of herbal remedies and walked into his bedroom. Abel was staring at the man (or staring as well as a plant could), all the buds turned toward the body. "What the fuck are you staring at?"

"He's a pirate," The flower commented flatly. Lovino scowled.

"No shit, dumbass. Anything intelligent to say?" He placed the herbs and spool on the bedside before trying to undress the man before him. He had done various medical procedures all the time…just on animals and sometimes a carcass. Okay, maybe he practiced on the occasional slice of spoiled meat he forgot to salt and it was fucking disgusting…But it was for medical reasons! It had been a while since he'd actually treated a person, considering the circumstances, but he was pretty sure he remembered how to deal with these types of things…Pretty sure…Fuck he'd have to wing this.

"Okay…" he breathed in and out to calm himself down for the daunting task before him. "Shit, this looks a lot worse in the light. Abel, go make yourself useful and get some water and the belladonna in the back." The plant grunted in response, recognizing that the boy had finally entered 'medic' mode and decided to cut the crap for once. Lovino rolled up his sleeves and wiped some of the sweat breaking out on his forehead.

When Abel returned, Anri had shifted to the pot sitting at the bedroom window with him to see the body. Upon seeing that she was there, Abel waddled over to sit close to her underneath the windowsill. They stretched and hovered next to Lovino, watching him work in silence before Anri decided to poke the unconscious man's face with an extended root. "I can't believe it…"

Lovino sighed, exasperated, "Yeah, yeah he's a pirate I know al-"

"He's a total hottie!" Anri gushed.

Abel took a moment before nodding in agreement. "Hmmmm….this could be a problem…Cici, I think it's about time we gave you a talk on the birds and the bees…" he said, rubbing an aconite bud thoughtfully.

"Will you guys just shut up for once?!"

So after several rather stressful hours of work, Lovino finally managed to patch up the pirate properly. He wiped his forehead and threw aside the bandages. After Anri's outburst, Lovino had to struggle to keep himself from blushing or fumbling. It was true, what she said. After pushing away the hair, he noticed that the pirate was indeed, fairly good-looking. Well, good-looking for a pirate. And pirates were not handsome at all to begin with. Nope, not one bit. He was average. That's right; he was so average that he wasn't even worth looking at. It was just awkward because with the clothes and blood, Lovino had to take everything off. And by everything he meant _everything_. The chiseled chest and legs were something Lovino saw every day; nothing special at all. When it was all done, he had never been more grateful for his grandfather's incompetency in choosing clothes for him. None of his clothes fit the tall Spaniard but those oversized clothes that his _Nonno_ bought for him in hopes that he would grow into them actually worked. It was a pain in the ass to get the man dressed without injuring him again, but he didn't want the guy to wake up naked and then do something…weird.

Lovino yawned loudly as Anri poured him a cup of tea in the kitchen. He was close to just sleeping there on the kitchen table. "God, I'm tired." He rubbed at his eyes and looked outside; the night seemed a little lighter than he remembered.

Anri jerked her chrysanthemum buds towards the bedroom, "Do you want to move him out?"

"Hell no, he needs it more than me right now." He drank down the rest of his cup before getting up to go outside, "I'll just sleep with you guys tonight."

Abel twirled his pipe between his roots and leaves. "You sure? Last I remember you complained about all the dirt and bugs that kept getting into your clothes. Think you can handle it now Mr. Prissy Boy?"

"Shut up," Lovino replied half-heartedly. He was too tired to really be angry at the moment, "Let's just go already." Before the two sprites could reply, he walked outside and into the garden. Without so much as a care, he threw himself on top of the begonias, which cushioned his body before slowly placing him on the grass. They carefully framed the boy's body, shading him from the dawn's rays and surrounding him in an almost protective embrace.

Abel and Anri didn't join Lovino, they stayed up watching their guest for the rest of the night. They couldn't do much in their current state, but they stood watch anyway in their little pots. The aconite attempted to blow on his pipe, somehow managing to blow a smoke ring into the room. "I don't like this."

Anri sighed, rustling her leaves nervously. "I don't either, but it's already been set in motion. There's nothing we can do…"

Abel threw the pipe loudly onto the floor, "You're wrong, if we could just get rid of him we

could-"

The brunette glared at him and spoke in a dangerously low voice, "You know very well what would happen if you did that, just let this run its course. If Lovino survives, he will be better for this in the end, and you know it."

"Damn it, he's a kid! He's not ready, he's only eighteen!"

"He's an adult now! He can choose for himself!"

Abel took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, "So you're letting this kid go out and hurt himself? We don't even know if what Lukas said is true! For all we know the damn fairy could be pulling our legs!"

The chrysanthemums shook angrily, and she glared at him, "He's never been wrong before, why lie now?" She quieted down and she turned to the window, seeing their precious boy sleeping peacefully. "I'm not saying that we should stand aside, we'll be there for him, but it's about time he moved onto something better, right? He can't be cooped up here his whole life."

She then sagged into her pot, tired, and drooped over her pot, her buds making a sad overhang. Abel reached out to grasp her roots in his. He sighed, "Fine, you win. I get it already. It's just hard, to watch the kid go out into there…."

Anri nodded in agreement, "It will be lonely with him gone…" She let out a mournful sob, "But if he's happy, then I'm happy." She glanced at the sleeping patient, "I wonder how long it will take for them to come together?"

Abel ruffled his leaves in annoyance, "If that guy's hands start wandering, future be damned, I'm ripping them off."

Anri laughed gently, "I'm glad you understand…" she straightened up, "Right, so I'll go keep an eye on our little sapling and you can watch old sleeping beauty over there."

"Good, I don't want that pirate bastard to get any ideas about you."

The chrysanthemums made a rolling motion, probably a way of rolling her eyes, and smacked his pot playfully. "Don't go too far though, little brother."

"No promises."

* * *

"_Wake up sweetheart!" Lovino rubbed his eyes and woke up to see his beautiful mother staring down at him. "Upsy daisy, my little Lovi!" _

"_Y-yes mama," he yawned, pulling himself up. He pulled a shirt over his head and grabbed onto his mother's hand. "Mama, what's for breakfast?" _

"_We're having you of course!" Lovino's head snapped upward, and saw his wonderful mother transform, her serene face twisting into an unrecognizable horror. "We'll cook you on the cross, before sending you to the devil!" she cackled, her eyes burned away to reveal black holes dripping with blood. _

_Lovino tried to scream, to run. But he was trapped in place, petrified. He was dragged away to a bonfire. He was no longer 9 years old, he was 12. His arms and legs were bound and he was tied to the cross. He watched in horror as the village head lit the fire. The flame licked hungrily at the wood and as he screamed, he saw the people laugh. Their faces changed into that of rotting corpses with eyes and mouths lit aflame. "God, save me!" he cried out to the sky, tears running down his face. _

_The sky opened up and he could see Feliciano and his grandfather looking down on him. "Help me!" They were saying something to him, but he couldn't make out the words. They threw a rope down to him, but it was too short and he wasn't able to grab it with his hands, bound as they were. They mouthed for him to grab the rope, to save himself. He screamed to them that he couldn't reach it. He looked down and saw that the flame had reached his legs, before long it would eat him alive…_

Lovino woke up with a start, sweat beading his forehead. He slumped forward, realizing it was only a dream, again, and yawned and stretched. He looked down at himself, his clothes were covered and dirt and petals. He found that sleeping in the garden would sometimes help keep the nightmares at bay; other times his nightmares would get worse. But for the most part, the surrounding flora would help him out as much as they could. They grew like crazy when he wanted them to and protected him when he was in danger. Overall, they were much kinder than most of the people he met, which was kind of sad now that he thought about it.

He looked to around to see that the talkative sprites were asleep in their respective spaces. He sighed and pulled himself away from the clingy begonias. He wandered around the rest of the garden before finally reaching his precious tomato plants. They were a quiet bunch, a little too docile that made weeds and bugs flock to them way too often. After looking over the plant, he plucked a few of the tomatoes and went inside.

In the middle of breakfast, Lovino realized he needed to change the man's bandages and groaned. He was having doubts about bringing a pirate, _a pirate_, of all things to his tiny, defenseless cottage. Damn his stupid family principles. Help others for the sake of helping, it was a horribly naïve family motto, but Lovino ended up following it anyway. It had been two days and the pirate was still passed out on his bed. Hell, for all he knew, the man was probably in a coma and draining all his resources.

And yet, here he was, going into the bedroom, ready to play medic _again_. Lovino grumbled to himself as he pulled the man forward, letting him lean on him so he could remove the bandages. He wondered vaguely how long it would take for the man to wake up, because he wasn't keeping the guy around if he was just going to sleep. As idiotic as he was for taking the guy in, he wasn't a complete fool. He already had one too many dumbasses to deal with and he didn't need a dead weight of a dumbass added to the pile.

Unbeknownst to him though, the pirate was, in fact awake. Before he knew it, Lovino found himself pinned to the bed and was being stared down by piercing green eyes. The man smiled brightly at him, "So _mi pequeño amigo_, who are you? And why have you taken me here, wherever we are?"

For a moment, the Italian was speechless, how could an injured man move so damn fast? "You fucking bastard, that fucking hurts!" he cried out, trying to get the man off of him. Not the best idea for when you're being held down by a potentially psychotic pirate. "Is this how you treat people who save your life, because that's what I fucking did when I found you on the damn beach!" his voice adopting a slightly desperate tone. The man didn't seem to find Lovino's argument that convincing, because he squeezed the boy's wrists tightly.

"So…you only found me on the beach you say?" he said, his voice still keeping the sing-song tone that started to scare the hell out of the Italian.

"Yes, you fucking psychopath, now let me the fuck go!" he screeched. He continued to thrash about, trying to get out of the man's grasp when the pirate grabbed him by the chin and forced him to look the other in the eye. The man seemed to be searching for something, analyzing him with cold, calculating eyes that made Lovino shiver. After what felt like an eternity, he let go of the Italian.

"I guess you were telling the truth then!~" he said happily, "you don't have the right look in your eyes to be a bad guy it seems!" This time the smile on the pirate's face seemed a little less sinister. It sort of made him look like a dopey idiot. A lot like his naïve brother really.

Lovino pulled away, trying to get some distance between him and the psycho before scowling, "That's what I was trying to fucking tell you, damn bastard!"

"My bad, my bad," the Spaniard said, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. "You can never be too careful; there are a lot of bad people out there, you know?" Noting that the boy in front of him was still seething, he tried to offer a peace branch to his apparent savior. He stuck out his hand, "I'm Antonio, and you are?"

Lovino looked at him suspiciously, "Fuck you."

Antonio sighed, "Well if you won't tell me your name, then I'll call you…uh…" He tilted his head in thought, before lighting up, "I'll call you _mi tomate_ then!"

"W-what the fuck?! Tomato?! Why the hell would you call me that?!" Lovino yelled, turning red at the statement.

Antonio's grin simply grew wider, "Because you look just like a tomato!" He moved forward to pinch the other's cheek but his face suddenly twisted in pain at the movement and he moved back, breathing shakily. "Ahaha, that took a bit more out of me than I thought…" he said, placing a hand shakily on his chest and pulling away to see blood.

"Fuck, this is what happens when you attack people on sight you bastard!" He moved over to clean off the wound. "Dammit, just when you were recovering too…"

"Oh? Are you worried about me little old me?" Antonio joked, still wearing an idiotic grin on his face.

"I didn't go through all this to keep you alive only for you to die on me you idiot," he snapped irritably. After disinfecting the wound properly, he looked back up at the stupid Spaniard's face, "There, now stay still and then I can finally finish this up." Thankfully, Antonio stayed quiet as Lovino rewrapped the man's chest. He worked in relative silence on the other wounds until he started re-wrapping the man's shoulder.

"So, _mi tomate_, why did you go out of your way to save me?" The last part sounded rather bitter to Lovino but he ignored it and sighed in resignation.

"Because…I just can't leave some guy to die out there. It's just…wrong," he managed to get out. God, if he could sound any more stupid than he would probably throw himself down the river out of embarrassment.

The pirate looked at him for a moment, then put on that damned grin again, "You're rather innocent, aren't you _mi tomate_? But that's still really cute too!"

"S-shut up!" he said, blushing.

"Aww, you really are a tomato!" and he moved over to hug the other when but the Italian flinched away.

"Don't touch me you bastard! Don't you get the meaning of personal space?!" He stood up and backed away from the bed.

"I do, but it's just so hard to resist hugging someone so cute!" he said cheerfully. Lovino twitched at the nickname.

He huffed, "Lovino." The pirate cocked his head to one side, dumbfounded. Lovino facepalmed, was this guy really a conniving pirate? "Ugh, just…just fucking call me Lovino okay?! Your '_mi tomate_' shit is getting on my nerves." And he turned away, pouting.

"Okay then Lovi~" The Italian twitched at the new nickname.

"Didn't you hear what I just fucking said?!" And the bastard laughed. He just sat there and laughed.

* * *

An hour of yelling later; or more like a flustered Lovino cursing and an injured Antonio laughing along, breakfast was finally out as well as two pesky sprites. The Italian finally got the man into proper clothes, his older clothes finally clean (He hid the sword and the pistol, didn't need a massacre going on here). Lovino was eating in his bedroom with Antonio, making sure the bastard wasn't breaking his stuff. But he was starting to regret the decision, as the Spaniard continued to talk to him in that infuriating voice of his.

"Lovi~" the Spaniard said, leaning over the other's shoulder to peer at the book he was reading. "Whatcha reading?"

Lovino groaned, "A botany book, nothing that would interest you, bastard. And move away already, you're going to open the wound again and this time, I'm not going to save you!"

"Hmmm…" the Spaniard clicked his tongue and simply leaned even more onto the Italian. He grabbed Lovino by the chin.

"W-what the fuck do you think you're doing you bastard!" he yelled, blushing at the close proximity and quickly pushed the man away.

Antonio stared at him intensely before finally speaking. "You know Lovi, I can't really tell what color your eyes are."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Lovino snapped.

"What I mean is that every time I look at you, it feels like the color changes. It seems to shift between hazel and olive green…it's beautiful!" And Antonio glomped him, nuzzling his face in the smaller male's hair.

"I-I-I- GET OFF ME!" Lovino stammered, turning redder and redder by the second. He tried to push the man away, but he couldn't use to much force or else the wound would reopen. Not that he cared or anything. He just didn't want to have to go out of his way to help the idiot again. He scowled, of all people, he had to pick up an annoying pirate with apparently no concept of personal space.

"It's like a kaleidoscope isn't it? Cici's eyes that is," a new voice said. The two looked up to see Abel standing in the doorway with his usual bored expression. His eyes flashed with anger when he looked at Antonio, but it immediately disappeared, making Lovino wonder if he even saw it in the first place. The blonde man flipped his blue scarf over his shoulder and turned to the younger male. "Cuddling up with your new boyfriend, Cici?"

"Fuck no!" he denied vehemently, reddening. "And he's not my boyfriend!"

Abel put up his hands in surrender, "Whatever you say, Cici, but remember to be careful, I hear pirates are riddled with diseases."

Lovino picked up a nearby book and threw it at the man, who simply ducked. Damn him.

Antonio stayed quiet to watch the exchange and grumbled a bit at the pirate comment before tilting his head in confusion, "Cici?"

"Short for Sicily," Abel said, and walked off as if that had explained everything. Antonio gave Lovino a confused look, but the Italian ignored him.

"Bastard, don't just walk off!" But Abel paid him no heed, giving him a mischievous smirk over his shoulder before leaving the room. Lovino spat curses at the man before settling down back into his seat beside the bed. He would run after the asshole, but he noticed Antonio reaching for one of his books and smacked the hand away. Like hell he was going to let a pirate touch his stuff. So he sat there, brooding. "That fucker, thinks he can just walk in here and make fun of me…" he muttered darkly.

"Sicily? Why did they name you after Sicily?" Antonio asked, confused.

"Che, like I'm going to tell you anything. You're a fucking pirate. Just because I helped you out doesn't mean we're suddenly friends. As soon as you can walk again, I'm kicking you out of here, before you can steal my stuff or slit my throat," he snapped. The last thing Lovino needed was another person out to kill him.

"I may be a pirate, but that doesn't mean I don't have heart Lovi. A debt unpaid is not so easily forgotten after all~" he said in a singsong voice. God he was only around for an hour and the guy already pissed him off way too much. When Lovino didn't deign a reply so he continued, "How about this, I'll tell you something about me and you'll tell me something about yourself, that way we won't be strangers anymore!"

"That's fucking ridiculous and you know it," Lovino retorted before trying to go back to his book.

"Pleaaase?" Antonio whined, giving him those puppy eyes that Anri so often tried to use on him. He was not going to give in damn it; he wasn't…"Pretty please?" The puppy eyes should have looked ridiculous on a fully grown man like Antonio, but for some odd reason, he managed to do it perfectly fine. It was pissing him off, and the more he stared at the Spaniard, the more it felt as if he had kicked some overgrown, albeit harmless, puppy. He turned his head away, ignoring the Spaniard's pathetic whines. He was not going to give into those eyes, those big green eyes and the cute er-ridiculous pout…

Lovino threw his hands up in the air, "Fine! Just stop with the fucking staring, it's so damn creepy you pervert bastard!"

"Yay!" Antonio paused, a thoughtful expression coming onto his face, "I guess I'll start then…uh, I'm the captain of the Stella Maris…" he stopped to stare at the other again, like he was expecting something. Whatever it was, he seemed to brighten up at the fact that Lovino didn't recognize the name, "Most people would call me a pirate though! So, now you!"

Lovino scoffed, "How could you be a captain when you're obviously an idiot?" Antonio simply continued to smile at him, waiting for him to answer. "Ugh, fine! I…" he stopped to think about what to say. It wouldn't do for him to find out who he was and he had a feeling that Antonio would be able to tell if he was lying or not. "I've lived here in Sicily my entire life, and I've been living a perfectly lawful life here," he said carefully before scowling again.

"Eh? You've never left this island?"

"No, why would I?" Lovino huffed, "That's all I'm going to tell you, bastard."

"So you've never felt any desire to leave? Don't you want anything more than this? This life of staying put doesn't seem to suit you." Lovino glared at the man.

"What the hell do you know about me, dumbass? I'm perfectly happy staying here!" He was lying. He knew very well how impossible it was to leave, for someone like him. He didn't know if Antonio could see through lie, but he didn't comment on it. There was an awkward silence after that. For a moment, Lovino almost wished the idiot would say something so as to break the awkwardness. Almost.

"So…what's the closest port city from here? I'm not going to stay here forever am I?" Antonio asked tentatively.

"Trapani is a day's walk from here, in about two weeks, when you can walk, a relative of mine will come to take you there," Lovino said dismissively.

"So that means I have two weeks to convince you to come with me!" Antonio said suddenly.

Lovino whirled around to face the other man, who was smiling triumphantly at him. The goddamn idiot probably thought he was being a saint or something, treating Lovino as if he was a charity case. "What the fuck do you mean come with you? I'm fine just where I am!"

"If you say so Lovi~ But I'll change your mind for sure!" he said, leaning over to hug the smaller male, but Lovino tilted back so as to avoid him. In response the pirate leaned forward too much and ended up falling out of bed, on top of the Italian and onto the floor.

"G-Get off of me, bastard!" he spluttered, trying to get away. Antonio turned slightly pink and made to move over, but Lovino's flailing started to impede the movement.

"S-sorry, ow- ow, Lovi, those are my ribs you're hitting…" Antonio eventually rolled over, breathing heavily and clutching at his sides.

Lovino sat up to look at him, and went to massaging the sore areas where the pirate's wounds were, "Fuck, I told you not to-" He was interrupted by the appearance of Anri at the door. She was blushing and when Lovino looked at her, she immediately turned away. "When did you…?"

She turned crimson and bowed, "I'm sorry for interrupting!"

Lovino turned scarlet, "We weren't doing anything dammit!"

* * *

"And you weren't doing anything?" Abel asked suspiciously, casting dubious glances at the pirate sitting at the other side of the dining table. They were eating some of the pasta the Italian had ended up making for them. Antonio sat across from Abel, Lovino sat in-between them, and Anri sat across from him. Of course, this was a completely planned arrangement to keep the two idiots from ripping their throats out or trying anything beyond their current staring contest.

"Hell no! I just met the idiot, why would I be doing that kind of stuff?!" Lovino said harshly, cheeks burning.

Abel shrugged, "A man has needs."

Anri looked scandalized, "That's disgusting, don't talk about that at the dinner table!"

Antonio laughed, "Well, he does have a point!"

The blonde man scowled at the pirate, "Whatever, keep stay away from my kid or I'll be ripping your damn head off."

"Hey! I'm not yours and I'm not a kid either asshole!" Lovino snapped, but Abel ignored him in favor of glaring at the injured man at the other side of the table.

The Spaniard was unfazed, "Well, I wasn't really planning on doing anything to little Lovi here. Besides, it's really his choice of whether or not I get to stick around isn't it?" he said in amusement.

"Like hell it is. He's a kid under my-" Anri coughed and gave him a look, "_-our_ care, so I can tell him what to do and what not to do."

"Not like a fucking follow your orders anyway!" the Italian cut in, "Why the fuck are you being such an ass today? Just leave him alone. He's staying with us until he heals up and Feli takes him back. That's final!" He glared at the larger man, daring him to contradict. He looked like he was going to, but the female sprite kicked him harshly under the table and he conceded.

The pirate, on the other hand, smirked at him. "So I guess that means I do get to hang around mi tomate then!" Before the little brunet could protest, the pirate wrapped an arm around him and dragged him out of his chair to sit in the pirate's fucking lap. "I'm sure we'll all have lots of fun!"

Abel crushed the fork in his hands and looked all but ready to stab Antonio in the neck with it when Anri, who had been quiet throughout the exchange, wrapped her arms around everyone present. "Yes, yes, we'll all be _one_ big happy family right?"

"Ugh, Anri-" the aconite sprite started, but the brunette squeezed the blonde's neck tighter.

"We'll all be one big _happy_ family yes?" Her smile was starting to freak Lovino out. "And families always sit at the table and eat dinner quietly and are nice to each other riiight?"

What else could they do but agree? In Lovino's defense, and everyone else's, chrysanthemums were fucking terrifying when they don't get their way.

* * *

**Poor Lovino. The three people with 'A's' to start their names...there will be so many grouping names in my mind it wasn't even funny. Maybe I'll allude to them next update. Ciao, and please drop a review on your way out. **


	3. Of Flowers and Pirates

**A/N: I got a review with questions that may or may not have been clear in the story to readers, so I'll make it clear here about flower sprites: **

**Well, certain plants are able manifest into a human body which can pretty much be seen by anyone. It's the ability to talk to vegetation and more-or-less control them that's special about Lovino. It's a lot like finding a fairies...in which they can often be seen by many but only if they take on a physical form and if they don't choose to conceal themselves. And Abel and Anri, for the most part, don't really bother hiding because:**

**1\. Since there's a guest, it's easier to tell Antonio to back off and passive-aggressively or straightforwardly protect Lovino from possible outsiders and enemies, spiritual and non-spiritual.**  
**2\. It's easy to show Lovino's relatives/Antonio that Lovino himself isn't crazy or something like that.**  
**3\. The physical appearance and the fact they are real and seeable make them seem more solid companions that Lovino can take comfort in.**

**For the most part, as these plants have a fairly low magical power compared to other creatures I may or may not introduce, they don't have a large repertoire of spells like a genuine witch so they don't really conceal themselves whenever manifesting into a human. If they're injured or there's a lack of sunlight, they get too weak to sustain a human body.**

**Okay that's really long, so let's get to the story then. To those whom it may concern, Little Mermaid will get an update either tomorrow or Sunday. **

**Disclaimer: Because I forgot to write this on other chapters and it was starting to bother me. I don't own APH! there I said it. **

* * *

**Chapter 3: Of Flowers and Pirates**

Antonio had only been around for three days, but his presence almost felt natural. As if he had been there his whole life…aside from the fact that he was injured. And because of that, Lovino ended up falling into a routine. He would wake up, check on Antonio, eat breakfast with Antonio, and then play the stupid 'get-to-know-each-other' and 'persuade-Lovi-to leave with me' game with, of course, Antonio. Why Lovino decided to humor the pirate was something he didn't know himself. Loneliness? A longing for human companionship after so long? He must be pretty pathetic then to be so desperate. For the most part, they didn't share anything really specific aside from random, useless facts.

Antonio liked tomatoes and the color green. Very few of his crew were actually from Spain, like him. He had closer friends from the strangest places; from France to Germany and Austria to Monaco. He was frightened in particular by a Hungarian woman, saying that her frying pan wielding skills were something to be feared. He hated the church, although he had yet to say why. And whenever he could, he would attack any city dominated by religion of any sort, the "corrupt" cities in particular. The way he described himself, Antonio sounded more like someone like Robin Hood, or Don Quixote, both Lovino supposed. An idiot with seemingly good intentions. Emphasis on 'seemingly'.

On the other hand, Lovino had revealed very little about himself (or so he thought). He liked his garden, preferred plants over people. He had a twin brother, and grandfather. Anri and Abel were…'friends' and were practically family but they lived far from town because Lovino…"disliked" the strictly religious town of Trapani. But he lived here in Sicily since, well, forever. And he would most likely die here too. Compared to Antonio, Lovino couldn't help but feel that he was just so…boring. Well, fuck that, boring and safe was better than excitement and danger he supposed.

Of course, when the other sprites found out about Antonio, things just got even more embarrassing for him. Feliks, for instance, was being particularly fussy. "I like, can't believe you reeled in such a hottie. I mean, like, you should totally introduce me!"

"Hah, I don't really think he's your type. Stay still already, do you want the fucking bugs off or not?" The orchid huffed and moved his leaves over to reveal a nasty nest of aphids.

Meanwhile, Govert, the stupid ivy sprite hanging in the tree, jumped down to watch. "Eww, looks gross Feliks. Didn't think you'd be facing an infestation!"

The orchid blushed, or as best as a flower could blush, "It was all Michelle's fault! That country bumpkin like, totally dropped all her junk onto me!" He crossed his leaves angrily and hunched over, "I like, can't even walk around and if the other orchids ever hear about this they'll like, totally make fun of me!"

The young male sprite laughed, "I don't think you need to worry about that, you've got me and Michelle," then he wrapped an arm around the working herbalist, "And best of all, you've got a qualified surgeon right here!"

Lovino slapped him, "Get the fuck out of here so I can focus! Go annoy someone else or something!"

The strawberry blonde pouted and tried to use the puppy eyes on him. "Aw, but I wanna watch! That, and I wanna get those aphids! I can use them in my experiments!"

"If that's the case…" Govert's red eyes sparked with hope. "Then fuck no," Lovino deadpanned.

"Whhhhyyyy?" the ivy sprite clung onto his arm and complained.

"Because last time I did that, you fucking brought over an eight-legged sheep! No one in their right mind would send that half-baked experiment as a present! What else have you been doing to the poor things?"

Feliks piped in, annoyed, "Are you going to like, get the aphids off now? They're starting to chafe," he whined.

Throwing the annoying red-eyed male off of him, he went back to pulling off the annoying green pests off of the equally annoying orchid. Honestly, he didn't know _why_ he bothered to help the idiot. His fault for probably messing around downstream with the herbs. Not to say anything bad about Michelle, she was actually somewhat endurable for a piece of rosemary, but for the most parts, herbs were overbearing, annoying, and had the worst laughter. Seriously, he had to bring along earplugs whenever they were around.

Stuffing all the little aphids in a jar, he passed it to the whining ivy sprite. "Thanks a bunch Cici! I promise that it will be a two-headed goat instead of an eight-legged lamb next time!"

"Like that's any better! Just don't blow up the forest dumbass while you're at it dumbass, don't make me regret this!" The strawberry blonde enthusiastically nodded and ran off to God knows where to do God knows what. Feliks, on the other hand, sighed in contentment, "Like, super thanks Cici. It would totally suck if they started eating my flowers. Are you like, gonna get that pirate hottie to like, pollinate you?"

He choked. "Why the hell do you think that?!"

Feliks shook his head, "Cici, you're like, totally mating age or really, really overdue. I like, don't know whether you're a late bloomer or something but it's about time you found somebody."

"I don't fucking need anyone!" Lovino lied and crossed his arms while scowling. Of course, the sprite could see through that half-baked lie.

The orchid sighed exasperatedly and then changed to a more serious topic, "Like, be careful Cici. I hear that she's going to be visiting soon."

The herbalist's eyes widened, "What? Fuck, she was here last month!" He ran a nervous hand through his hair and scowled at the sky, "What the fuck does she-"

"Lovi?" Well, double fuck. The pirate came looking for him. "Lovi? Anri says it's time for lunch! Where are you _mi tomate?_"

"Guh, not a word, you bastard!" Lovino hissed at the orchid. It snickered, but didn't say anything else. The herbalist turned around to see Antonio crash through the bushes.

"There you are, Lovi~! You've been out here all day!"

"It's only been an hour, you clingy bastard!"

"And that's an hour too long, to be away from my Lovi~!" He held out his hand to help Lovino get off the ground.

"Stop using those damn squiggles bastard!" He was a little peeved from the previous conversation with the stupid orchid, but grabbed the idiot's hand anyway. This was a mistake as Feliks had wrapped a root on his ankle and when he ended up tripping. And whoopdeedoo, he fell forward. On Antonio.

The injured man grunted, trying to catch him and ended up falling over too. But nonetheless, he still wore his stupid grin, "Aw, Lovi if you wanted a hug so badly, then you could have asked!"

"I just tripped! Don't take it that way you stupid bastard!" But the idiot just wrapped his arms and hugged him tightly to his chest. Turning his head, Lovino could see the orchid giving him a thumbs up. Feliks was so dead. The moment he got free he was going to kill him.

* * *

He didn't kill Feliks, only because he was totally merciful and an awesome person and all that. The rest of the day passed on without much fuss aside from the usual death stares and antics of the sprites waiting at home. Antonio was still a little sore after that debacle in the forest. Stupid Abel probably sent him because he knew he would get hurt. Bastard. But he was getting better, despite the minor setback. Maybe idiots heal faster than normal people. But anyways, next morning, Lovino came up to Antonio's room, only to find that the man wasn't there. "Oi, bastard!" he called, peeking his head in while trying to balance a breakfast tray in one hand.

"Lovi~" The Italian yelped when he felt himself get hugged from behind. "Aren't you happy? I finally got the walking down! Now I can hug _mi tomate _properly!"

"Fuck you!" Lovino pushed the man away, trying to get the blush off his face. Antonio was stronger than he looked. Over the past few days they had been practicing walking. He still walked with a slight limp and he couldn't walk for too long, but if this kept up, the Italian figured the man would be completely healed in a few days. A few days earlier than expected. At least the worst part was over. There were numerous times when he was helping Antonio recuperate that were so horribly awkward and embarrassing that he wished he'd never picked up the pirate in the first place. Take yesterday afternoon for instance. If Antonio fell over, that meant Lovino fell too, and always in some suggestive looking position that would make the Italian go red to the tips of his ears. The idiot would always laugh, and give him a lopsided grin. Bastard was probably enjoying it. Fucking pervert.

"Aww, no need to be so mean Lovi~" Antonio stepped forward and held him in another hug, albeit this one was looser than before. Lovino huffed and let the man hug him. It seemed the pirate loved violating his personal bubble whenever possible. It was better to let him do it or else the pirate would hurt himself….again.

"Fucking retard, just eat you goddamn breakfast already," he said, scowling.

If it was possible, Lovino thought the smile on Antonio's face got brighter and the taller male flopped down onto the bed with only a slight wince. "You'd be a good housewife, the way you cook Lovi~" he said as he pulled a piece of toast into his mouth, before ruffling the smaller male's hair and coming dangerously close to a certain hair curl.

"S-Shut up!" Lovi stuttered, then made way for the exit. "I'm going out to the garden, don't bother me!"

"But I want to come too!" Antonio latched onto his arm. "It's so boring in the morning without my Lovi. And besides, Abel and Anri are always gone in the morning."

"Maybe it's because you're just too annoying to deal with this early in the morning," Lovino retorted, rolling his eyes. "Now let me go bastard!"

He shook off the idiot's arm and grabbed his customary blue cloak, running outside before Antonio could answer. Lately, he would feel a little lightheaded around the pirate. He hoped stupidity wasn't contagious. Maybe it was those stupid green eyes or cute-er stupid face and stupid hair but Lovino had to get over it soon.

He sat himself down in the garden, idly pulling out weeds from a growing plot of honeysuckle. They giggled softly as he pruned them. Honeysuckle and other warm flowers tended to laugh a lot. The colder flowers, like rhododendron, liked to whisper and gossip. For the most part, they didn't assume a human, corporeal form like Anri and Abel. Those two were one of the rare, more powerful spirits of their own kind. There were others, but he didn't speak with them often because they were far more annoying than the idiots in his own home. If anything, he preferred the non-humanoid plants that talked to him. The weaker plants often did their best to help him whenever he asked. They were quiet and rather soft spoken too, which was a blessing in itself for the easily irritated Italian. Right now though, with his 'guest', he needed to be extra careful because if he reacted too strongly or got too excited, then the surrounding flora would react in accordance to his will.

He would be crushed if he lost someone else because of his damned powers. He could count the number of people he could truly trust with only one hand. Anri, Abel, Nonno, Feliciano…and only half of them were his fellow human beings. It was a little disappointing, and he hoped that maybe, just maybe, he could add Antonio to that list.

Lost in thought, he pulled at one of the honeysuckle, eventually easing away a clingy wasp from the bud and flicking it away. The honeysuckle hummed in contentment, thankful that the offending insect was gone.

He smiled at them, "You're welcome," he whispered gently. It laughed lightly in response, it was all they could manage, but it was enough. If only, all people were like flowers, or at least trees, slow as they were.

As much as he liked their company, he still felt angry about it. If he was not born with this power, he would have been free and there was no need to hide. No need to hide from the world for fear of what would happen. He touched his chest, rubbing the area in an attempt to soothe the phantom pains that sometimes occurred. With this train of thought, he began scowling again.

And his scowl became more pronounced when a certain pirate stepped outside. "Lovi~ want to go fishing together?" He lifted up two rods, smiling brightly as usual. Lovino could feel the pain in his chest lighten a bit.

"What the fuck did I just say about bothering me?" Lovino grumbled, "Just go do your stupid shit by yourself!"

"But, Anri just showed up again and said you needed something to cook for tonight's dinner! And since I don't know where to fish, you should come along with me," Antonio announced, smiling so brightly it was almost blinding.

"Fine. But only because you're too much of a dumbass to do it yourself." Antonio laughed in response, dragging the other away. He passed the smaller male a fishing rod, "Abel passed these to me, he's really warming up to me~"

Lovino scoffed, "Che, I bet he threw those in your face and told you to make yourself useful, dumbass."

Antonio made a surprised face, his mouth a perfect 'o', "How did you know? Are you psychic or something?"

The Italian face-palmed. "Were you dropped on your head when you were born?"

"I'm not sure actually!" Lovino sighed in resignation. He seemed to be doing a lot of sighing lately, although it wasn't surprising with the company he was keeping. After a good twenty minutes of Antonio's rambling, they finally reached the river.

"Shut up and sit down bastard," Lovino ordered, pushing the other to sit onto the bank beside him. And by beside him, the Italian meant at least 5 feet away from him. After situating themselves, they fell into a peaceful silence. That is, until Antonio decided to break it again.

"So, it's your turn to say something about yourself again right?" Antonio inquired curiously.

The little brunet turned away, "I don't feel like playing your damn games today, bastard."

"Aww, don't be like that Lovi~" he pinched the other's cheek, "Pretty please?"

Lovino swatted the hand away and rubbed at his sore cheek, "Fine! Ugh I…I don't know how to swim."

"Hmm, you told me that already, tell me something else," Antonio said, casually flicking a bug that flew too close to his countenance.

"Ugh, there isn't anything to say!" Lovino pouted, "There's nothing interesting about me…" At this Antonio narrowed his eyes and scooted over to him. "W-what are you doing, bastard?!"

"You're not boring Lovino. You're the most interesting person I've ever met." Lovino turned slightly pink at the statement, speechless for a second. Then Antonio put on a mischievous grin, "Of course, you're probably the prettiest too. Do you know that you're very beautiful when you smile?"

That seemed to spur Lovino into action, "You bastard, what the fuck were you doing spying on me?! So you're not only a pirate, you're a fucking peeper!" He whacked the man upside the head, "Next time, watch the ground or go stab yourself with a knife, I don't fucking care anymore!" Lovino shoved the man away from him and sat farther away. Of course, the infuriating Spaniard simply moved along with him.

"Aww, you're so cruel Lovi~" Antonio wrapped an arm loosely around his shoulders, "C'mon, we've got to be friends now, right?"

"Hmph," the feisty Italian simply puffed up his cheek, pouting. "I'm ignoring you bastard."

Antonio let out his signature laugh. "Well, I guess it's my turn then. I'll let you have a freebie this time," Antonio said, wagging his finger at Lovino as if he was little kid. "Now let's see…well have I told you about the time we raided England on accident?" Lovino gave a noncommittal response. The Spaniard took that as the 'okay' to go on. "It all started when Gilbert led our ship in the wrong direction…" At this, Lovino tuned in a little more. He liked listening to these tales, stories of adventure and not the usual lectures about plant growth. It was amusing to watch as Antonio tended to gesticulate widely, nearly dropping his rod at one point.

"And that's how I met Kirkland, and became his mortal enemy!" Antonio finished.

Lovino rolled his eyes, "And that's supposed to be a good thing?"

The pirate ignored him. "Okay, so now it's your turn!"

Lovino sighed, "Well I- Fuck!" His rod suddenly lurched forward, nearly bringing him with it if Antonio had not grabbed him in time. Securing him in his lap, Antonio grabbed with one hand to help the smaller male pull in the fish. Under normal circumstances, Lovino would have been extremely offended but this was an exception he was willing to make for now.

"Whoa, this one's really strong isn't it?" Antonio panted slightly, trying to catch his breath as he leaned back to keep Lovino from falling in. The Spaniard furrowed his brows slightly, were his injuries so bad that he got tired from something so menial?

The smaller male simply gritted his teeth, "The little fucker thinks he can take the bait and run off!" He pulled even harder, "C'mon Antonio, use you're fucking back, and if I fall in I'll kill you!"

"Got it!" They pulled together, and eventually, the line seemed to slack a little and the fish got closer and closer. For a moment, Lovino nearly lost his grip at the fight the fish was putting up. But at last, they pulled the rod harshly upward and out the fish came out, flying into the air and splashing water onto the pair. They fell backwards and pulled the fish onto shore.

Lovino quickly got up to check the fish. Seeing that it was still alive and flopping, he kneeled down and pinned it with his knee before gutting it with his knife. It was fairly large, about 4 feet, a size that he was usually unable to pull up on his own. When the fish finally stopped moving and Lovino managed to wash some of the blood of his cloak, he kneeled over Antonio, who was resting in the grass.

"Goddamn, look at it Antonio, it's huge!" he said, pointing at the fish.

Antonio pulled himself up to look over Lovino's shoulder, "That's great Lovi…" he took in deep breaths and tried to calm himself down.

He glared sheepishly at the wound on the pirate's chest (Only Lovi can make such a contradictory expression, Antonio noted to himself), but leaned over him to check up on the wounds. "Shit, I-I'm sorry I shouldn't have taken you with me after all…N-not like I care b-but if you die now than all my hard work will go to waste!" Antonio smiled at him weakly.

"So can we lay down just a little bit longer? Just to catch my breath?" Antonio looked at him imploringly. Well, fuck, the guy was injured what was he supposed to do? So Lovino flopped down next to the stupid pirate and crossed his arms. For the next few minutes, all they did was lie there. Lovino said nothing, only listening to Antonio's heavy pants even out into regular breaths.

Lovino waited a bit more for Antonio to catch his breath before speaking, "Let's get this thing back to the house, Anri's probably worried." He got up, wiping off the dirt on his knees and hooked his rod onto the gills before dragging it across the grass. When Antonio made no move to get up, Lovino stopped, "Are you coming or what bastard?"

Antonio was staring at him, but he seemed to snap out of it and gave him one of his winning smiles. "Of course I'm coming _mi tomate dulce_!" Lovino flushed red. From annoyance obviously! Not because he thought Antonio's smiles were cute at all! Because they weren't!

"Fuck. You." The Italian growled, but he waited all the same for Antonio to fall into step beside him.

…

* * *

Walking back to the house, they found Anri and Abel simply standing at the front door. Abel was leaning against the wall while Anri was sighing and sitting on the doorstep. At the sight of them, Anri sprang up to her feet.

"Ahh you've made mama so proud!" Anri cried out, taking good measure of the fish before picking it out of Lovino's hands with ease. "Come on in, I'll make something-"

"I'll make something! Ju-Just don't fucking move okay?" Lovino sped into the kitchen with the fish. Last time he had allowed Anri to take the fish to cook, she had made fish waffles….not the best combination. Antonio followed suit, but not before Abel gave some snide comment. Something along the lines of, "fucking pirates don't know how to fucking mind their own business" or something like that. The taller man was limping a little now, and Lovino had to drop the fish to help him to sit down at the dining table.

"Phew, thanks Lovi, I thought I was in trouble there…" The Spaniard rubbed his chest, trying to make the pain go away somehow.

"Don't scratch it dumbass!" he yelled over his shoulder. Antonio chuckled. The Italian always seemed to know who was hurt and who was not.

The pirate sighed dramatically, "Whatever you say _mi tomate_." Lovino gave his customary glare over his shoulder before darting around the kitchen to clean the fish. Antonio watched him admiringly. It would be a lie to say that he didn't find the Italian extremely attractive. He wasn't lying either when he said that Lovino was the prettiest person he had ever met. Which was saying something considering how many women and sometimes men, threw themselves at him.

He frowned slightly. He wasn't sure why, but he just felt protective about the Italian. Maybe it was the sadness that hung over Lovino in the way he walked, the way he talked. Hopefully he would be able to get the Italian to let go of these reservations. Then maybe he would really be happy! But he had to find his ship, his crew, his stuff….

"Hey, Lovi, did you happen to see anything else when you found me on the beach?" Lovino scowled at him when he said that.

"No," the smaller male turned away, "And that's not going to fucking change no matter how many times you ask me that. Look, mail is coming in soon so just wait a bit and then we'll see news of what maybe happened."

"Ah right, your brother huh?" Antonio mused on how the twin would look and act like. "He sounds really interesting!"

Lovino scoffed loudly, "Hah, if you mean being a fucking idiot is interesting. I bet you two would get along just fine, idiots go well together after all." The last part came out to be a little bitter.

"But don't worry Lovi! You'll always be my number one!" Antonio reassured. He pulled himself up, and limped over to wrap his arms around the feisty Italian. "_Te amo mucho, mi tomate!" _

"S-shut up! I've got a fucking knife right now and I'm not scared to use it, bastard!" Lovino tried to shove the man away but Antonio was leaning heavily on him.

"I could use a little help…"

"Why are you such a dumbass?" Lovino groaned before dragging Antonio _again_ to awkwardly sit the other man down _again_ and then be trapped in a death hug…_again_. And no, he's said it a thousand times and will say it a thousand more if it will get it into the idiot's skull, he didn't enjoy or awkwardly and subtly return it. Nope. And of course, that's when Abel walked in.

The blonde man scowled heavily, before separating the two of them roughly. "Save it for when you two are in the bedroom. Unlike some of us, I prefer to keep the room for eating and the room for fucking separate."

Lovino gouged out one of the fish's eyes and threw it at Abel. "Go to hell, asshole!" The bastard ducked at the last second and the organ flew into Anri's face instead. Lovino paled. Ooops.

Anri's shoulders shook, and a dark aura emanated from her presence. "My, my what are we doing in here, hmmm?"

Lovino shivered a little, "N-nothing!"

Abel kept quiet, his self-preservation instincts kicking in and he stepped aside nervously for Anri as she stalked past him. She peeled the fish eye stuck to her cheek and dropped it in the trash. Unlike Lovino and Abel, Antonio seemed completely unaffected by the sprite's sudden change in personality. He had the gall to smile in her face as if nothing was wrong.

Not even sensing the impending doom approaching, the Spaniard grinned and spoke, "So, are you going to make something instead Anri?"

The brunette suddenly did a 180 again and smiled back, "Of course! I'll make my famous fish waffle that Cici loves so much! Right Cici?"

"R-right…" But on the inside Lovino was praying that Anri would not catch him throwing out the food the moment he got it. If there was any fate worse than death, it was being forced to eat her fish waffles.

* * *

**That's right. Pointless fluff because it actually was a part of the previous chapter but was cut into two pieces. But next chapter will pick up. Promise. Please drop a review on your way out. And thank you to those who reviewed/favorited/followed this story. Thou art my inspirations. **

**By the way, character intros if you didn't get them.**

Govert (ivy - fidelity, friendship) : Romania

**Feliks (orchid - long-lasting impression, beautiful lady *snorts*) : Poland**

**Michelle (rosemary - loyalty, remembrances) : Seychelles (she was briefly mentioned earlier) **


	4. The Little Priest Of Trapani

_**It's so damn long it's not even funny, but I'm too lazy to cut it again, so here you go. **_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own things. I only own my plot here. **_

* * *

**Chapter 3: The Little Priest of Trapani **

Soon after that, Antonio retired and went to sleep but not before embracing the herbalist again. The idiot exerted himself too much today. _"I just really like hugging my cute little Lovi~!" _Which was the stupidest answer Antonio had given yet. Shoving, not gently tucking, the bastard into bed, Lovino left the room. He had lots of stuff to do now that Antonio was no longer pestering him. Like…like watering the garden, weeding the garden, laundry…he could clean the house… That's right he had a fucking whole lot to do, he totally had a life outside of taking care of stupid pirates.

The day passed with Lovino being bored to death. He sat in the garden and listened to the chatty flora as he waited for the laundry to dry. The bastard always got his damn clothes dirty and it would be bad if he got sick from how wet his clothes were after this afternoon. So before the idiot went to sleep he had to clean them, and when he told Antonio, the bastard just gave him a shit-faced grin. At least he didn't wear his ridiculously flashy pirate coat, because it was a bitch to wash the first time with all the blood on it from before.

It soon turned dark and he was all alone in the garden.

The two other sprites had left for some meeting near the river or something like that. The meetings came irregularly. Sometimes the gap was as short as several minutes to several years. But all the same, Lovino dropped their potted plants near the river and left, allowing the flowers to talk about whatever they talked about. Which was probably along the lines of bragging and insulting as they compared whose leaves or buds were prettier or some shit like that. That's exactly what happened last time Lovino asked to join in and he wasn't eager to attend another 'meeting'.

So there Lovino sat in the garden, twiddling his thumbs when Lukas showed up.

"The fuck are you doing here?" He definitely did not squeak or jump when he saw the oleander sprite appear out of nowhere. He was blonde, like Abel, with a perpetually bored look glued to his face. He never smiled, never laughed, and made snide comments every now and then. Always with a completely straight face of course. Anri and Abel wore more traditional looking clothes, Anri with a clean white blouse and a brown skirt while Abel wore the usual tunic and vest/jacket combo in addition to an out-of-place blue scarf. It was, overall, traditional villager garb. But Lukas, being Lukas, wore a dark blue sailor uniform with a beret and cross pin in his hair. He said he could see the future, and as fishy as it seemed, Lukas was never wrong when it came to his predictions.

The bored man seemed unaffected by Lovino's rudeness, "I just wanted to give you this." The monotone bastard threw a scabbard at him. Clumsily, the Italian caught it, fumbling and grumbling before securing it firmly in his hands. He frowned when he realized what it was.

"What the fuck is this?" He furrowed his brow and then tried to pull the knife out of its scabbard, but it didn't want to come out.

"You'll need it, don't know when but you will," Lukas replied in a bored tone, his face still devoid of any emotion. "It'll open when the time is right, so take good care of it and don't lose it."

Lovino pinned the indifferent sprite with the dirtiest glare he could muster, "Why do I need a knife? Tell me what you saw in the future, now."

Lukas looked at him, unimpressed. "You already know she's coming." He looked back at the forest, his expression was almost nervous. "I've already said enough; ask the other two if you want to know more." He walked away, leaving a dumbfounded Lovino to stare at the sheathed knife in his hands. At the last second, Lukas turned around and waved, "Good luck, little witch."

At that, Lovino's head snapped upwards and he scowled. "Don't call me that, asshole!" But Lukas was gone. He ignored the stab of fear he felt when he received the warning. He had always been able to handle her before…hadn't he? He examined the knife more carefully this time, the scabbard was simple. It was a dark blue, almost black, color with a painting of a pure white Oleander blossom on the front. The hilt was bound in black lacquered leather with a small opal placed in its center.

It looked more decorative than practical. He tried again to unsheathe the dagger, examining every possible detail that might show how he could pop the weapon out. "Shit, this thing is airtight…"

"What's airtight?" Lovino squeaked…or that was what most people would be led to believe. Lovino was a manly man who certainly did not squeak. He may have jumped a little when he heard Antonio and found the man so close to him. But that's a natural reaction when someone appears out of nowhere!

Antonio moved to take the dagger but Lovino held it close. "Like hell I'm going to give this to you, you'll probably break it, bastard!"

"So mean…" Antonio pouted, his lower lip sticking out. But he cheered up immediately, and hugged the little Italian, "But whatever you say, Lovi~!"

"Gah, get off! When will you get the message to stay away from me you bastard!" But this time he didn't bother, pushing the older man away, since he knew by now that no amount of shoving would deter the idiot from a hug. Damn bastard was relentless.

He could feel Antonio smile as the pirate nuzzled his face in the smaller male's hair. "That's what you always say _mi tomate_ but you've always hugged me back!"

"I have fucking not!" Shit, he didn't actually hug him back did he? He scowled as darkly as he could at the Spaniard before finally extricating himself from the mess that was Antonio. "Why the fuck are you out here anyways? I thought you were asleep!"

"Hmmm, I woke up and I didn't see you or the others so I went to find you," he looked up at the sky, "And it's such a beautiful moon tonight, don't you think?" Lovino huffed, but looked up as well.

"It's a new moon you dumbass! All there is out here are stars!" Antonio laughed.

"But it's still beautiful _si?_" he leaned in to whisper conspiratorially, "And plus, I hear that the fairies come out to play when the moon is away. Won't it be fun to find some?"

"There are no such things as fairies you bastard," Lovino said, letting out a short bark of laughter. It was just too ironic.

"Aww, but isn't fun to believe in just a-"Antonio stopped speaking when he heard music. He cocked his head to one side to hear where it was coming from better. To no avail, the music seemed to come from everywhere. "Do you hear that Lovi?"

"Of course I hear it you idiot," Lovino replied, thinking fast. Stupid fucking idiots, fairies couldn't be trusted to keep their own selves safe from equally stupid-and-yet-kind-of-perceptive pirates. "It's probably just Abel and Anri, they like playing out near the river and they've probably brought a couple of friends."

Antonio narrowed his eyes, still trying to detect the music's source, "But I thought you said we were alone up here?"

Lovino cursed inwardly. The bastard had to use his brain when he shouldn't! "Well…they sent out a letter this morning and invited a few people over and I kind of forgot. So stop worrying, you look like you're going to hurt yourself, stupid bastard." It was the lamest shit he had ever heard for a lie. But thank the gods that Antonio was an idiot, because he relented and then put back on his shit-eating smile.

"Hmmm, that so?" Lovino didn't like the glint in the pirate's eyes. Antonio, on the other hand, pulled himself from the ground and stood up in one fluid movement. Lovino followed suit, albeit a little bit clumsier. Damn it, even when he was injured that stupid pirate was more graceful than him. He smirked at Lovino, as if reading his mind. Fucking show-off.

He extended a hand to Lovino, who looked at him confused. "Since it's so nice out and the music is playing, won't you dance with me?" Antonio snickered when he saw the younger male flush.

"Why should I d-dance with you, stupid asshole?" Lovino turned away, "Dancing is for dumbasses!" He tried to stalk back into the house, but the bastard grabbed him by the hand.

He put on the stupid pout again. "Please? Just one dance? If you dance with me, I-I uh…" he paused to think a bit.

"Don't hurt yourself thinking, dumbass," Lovino sneered. Wouldn't he just let go already? He. Did. Not. Dance. End of story. Oh sure, he could dance, but he just didn't feel like it. Yes, that's right, he was a fucking master at dancing and stuff.

It was then that he had an idea, "If you dance with me, I'll give you a kiss!"

Lovino gaped at him, before spluttering, "W-what kind of offer is that?!"

The pirate wrapped an arm around the other's waist and pulled him close. "I'll have you know many would beg to even get a passing glance from me. I'm rather famous as a very good kisser if I do say so myself," the Spaniard was smirking, his tone slightly suggestive instead of dopey. Oddly enough, it seemed to suit him. Lovino flushed when the pirate leaned forward so close that their noses were almost touching.

"G-Get away from me pervert!" Lovino shoved him away and ran off into the forest. Unfortunately for him, he was tripped by the snapdragons (little traitors) and Antonio caught up to him. The pirate didn't pounce him as the Italian thought he would. Instead he sighed and pulled him up, firmly planting his hands on the smaller male's shoulders to maintain eye contact.

"Please Lovi? It's just one dance. For me?" He made those puppy eyes again. Goddammit, he was going soft.

He gave a resigned sigh, "Fine, but just one dance, capische?" Antonio brightened and nodded enthusiastically. The Spaniard grabbed both of his hands and pulled him so close, Lovino flushed even more. From embarrassment you pervert. Okay, he'd admit it. He was a horrible dancer and couldn't step in tune with Antonio quite right. He probably stepped on Antonio's foot a thousand times, but the pirate didn't do so much as bat an eye. Only guiding him gently in a circle around the garden, but careful to make sure they didn't crush any of his flowers.

Lovino could feel himself get dizzy from all the spins but it was soothing in a way. And how Antonio looked at him made him feel…like an idiot! He did not feel butterflies in his stomach nor did he feel happy in any way at dancing with a ridiculously hand- ugly….ah fuck it. He was enjoying himself and right now, Antonio looked fucking gorgeous at the moment. There, he said it!

It was like he was normal, for once. And he had to hide a small smile growing on his face as Antonio twirled him around. Before he knew it, the song was over and the two were caught standing face-to-face, fingers intertwined and faces so close to the point where Lovino was able to kiss the man if he leaned forward another few centimeters. Not like he was going to do such thing.

For a moment too long, the two stayed frozen like that. They were both slightly out of breath, staring into each other's eyes. That is, before Lovino came to his senses and pulled away, albeit much gentler than he wanted. Antonio frowned a bit at the other, wishing they could have stayed that way a bit longer. But he recovered quickly. If Lovino wanted to take this slow then he could stay and be patient.

Lovino felt that it was extremely hard to talk, awkwardly shuffling and staring at the ground. "I-I uh, I-" God he wanted to hit himself. Stop stuttering already!

Antonio smiled at him and walked closer, "Did you like the dance Lovino?"

The Italian blushed at the use of his full name, tongue-tied. "It wasn't horrible," he conceded grudgingly. He crossed his arms and tried to avoid looking into the Spaniard's expressive green eyes. Thank god it was dark, because Lovino could feel the blush rise from his cheeks all the way up to his ears.

Antonio smiled warmly at him, and cocked his head to one side. "Thanks Lovi~!" he chirped back, before wrapping his arms around the smaller male. Lovino made no move to pull away, resigning himself to the idiot's inescapable hug. It was quiet, the music had stopped, and all they did was stand there for a bit. Antonio hummed in contentment, and Lovino was surprised when he realized that his arms were moving of their own accord to gingerly hug the pirate back. He quickly put his arms down and was about to pull away when he heard a familiar voice call out.

"Fratello? Are you there, ve~?"

"Oh shit," Lovino turned to see idiot number one come skipping into the garden. Feliciano eyed the scene. And for once, he had opened his eyes, his mouth a perfect 'o'. Feli _never_ opens his eyes. Ever. He just skips around through town with his eyes nearly closed while wearing the dumb happy-go-lucky grin he sports every second of the day. His eyes darted from Lovino to the pirate that was holding him.

"I-I'm sorry if I'm interrupting!" Feli cried out, bowing and quickly backtracking into the cottage.

"Just…We weren't fucking doing anything, goddammit! And don't you say anything you bastard!" Lovino sniped, seeing that Antonio was about to open his mouth. "One word to him, and I gut you, got it?"

Antonio let go of the Italian and cocked his head to the side in thought. "I'll try," he replied, seeming for all of the world to be sincere. But Lovino could make out the mischievous glint in his eyes and tightened his grasp on the little knife he stuffed into his belt while they were dancing. For once, he was grateful the stupid oleander appeared.

...

* * *

...

"Ve~, so you're a pirate?" Feli asked, horribly intrigued by the stupid bastard. "So what's it like out at sea?" Feli was looking at the asshole with admiring eyes. It made Lovino want to punch something. Preferably Abel, why? Just cause! But for now, he had to settle for aggressively stirring the sugar in his tea.

"Yep! I've been captain since I was sixteen!" Antonio was still wearing his stupid grin. Forget punching Abel, he wanted to pound the pirate's face into the ground.

"Ve~? So you've been captain for 6 years?"

"Yeah, pretty much! You see, my captain wasn't a really nice guy, so I overthrew him! Then we dumped most of the old crew and rounded up some new friends. They're all really great, but I've still held onto some of the old guys, just for old time's sake you know?"

"I see…" Feliciano drifted off, before jumping back to reality when Lovino slammed his tea cup onto the table. "Oh….u-um, I guess I'm getting off topic huh?" Lovino grunted, preferring to give a stony glare at his twin. Feliciano sweatdropped, "Um, I have seen some new people come into town, they don't really look like the usual merchants that pass by either," the ditzy brunet smiled, "I met one of them, he's really sweet! His name's Ludwig and he's from Germany, and I think he said something about finding his captain…"

Antonio nearly jumped out of his seat, "T-that's him! _Dios_ I didn't think they would ever find me!" he said, relief evident on his face. "Did he look okay?"

Feli smiled, "Yes, he's claimed sanctuary at the church right now and he's staying with me…" The younger twin trailed off, and he toyed with his sleeves. The idiot must have just gotten off his duties, as he was still in his customary priest robes. The dope was blushing slightly and Lovino narrowed his eyes, noting to talk to his idiot brother in private later. But when Antonio started babbling again with his brother piping in, still wearing that stupid face of admiration, Lovino went back to thinking about all the ways he could kill Abel later. Why Abel and not the other two? Because Abel was dick and needed to get taken down a few pegs, that's why. Who cares if he doesn't seem relevant? Lovino fucking Vargas does whatever he fucking feels like!

It felt like an eternity before Feli finally got to the other point of why he was there, "Ve~, fratello I won't be able to come back to take Antonio into town. So u-um…" he twiddled his thumbs guiltily, "nonnoiscomingovertotakehimbackandseeyou!"

"Does it look like I speak idiot, Feli?" Lovino said flatly. But he already knew what the other would say.

"U-um, I know you won't like it…but Nonno is coming to pick Antonio up…" Lovino threw his hands up into the air.

"That's fucking great, just fucking perfect!" Lovino grumbled, but he softened his scowl when it looked like Feli was going to start crying for no good reason. "I'm not angry at you Feli, get your shit together already," he ground out. He wasn't angry, he was furious. And maybe…just maybe it had to do with the fact that Antonio couldn't seem to keep his eyes of his little brother. Not like it was jealousy or anything stupid like that, he just didn't want the pervert to get any weird ideas!

"U-um…well…um," Feliciano looked pointedly at the pirate, "Can I talk to you alone, fratello?"

Antonio raised his hands in surrender and moved over to his room. Lovino wasn't sure if he would be able to get a civil conversation through, he was still feeling pretty pissed about Antonio's staring. Damn pervert. "What is it that's so damn important?"

"I-I-I-" he stammered, trying to get the words out but so nervous he was visibly trembling.

"Just spit it out already!" Lovino snapped.

Feliciano looked down at the ground, his posture, somewhat ashamed. "I-I think I'm in love with him."

The elder twin narrowed his eyes, "You are, are you?" His tone changed from irritated to one of barely contained anger.

Feliciano shuffled his feet nervously, "I-I know it's wrong but I, I've just been spending so much time with him that I can't help but…"

"But what?" Lovino struggled to rein in his anger. Why was he so damn angry? It was just Antonio. The idiot was pirate and if anything, all he could say was that Antonio was a _friend_. That's all it was. So why did it hurt so much when he saw his brother with Antonio instead? He shouldn't be feeling jealous, more like protective rage for his brother. It was so damn confusing.

"But like him…I mean, Ludwig-"

"Wait, what?" Lovino looked at his twin confusedly. Weren't they talking about Antonio…?

"Hmm, what is it fratello?"

"I thought you were talking about Antonio…" the elder twin said slowly, making sure the ditzy kid before him was getting the message.

Feliciano wrinkled his nose, "No, I just met Antonio today, why would I say that I…" It was then that the confused expression morphed into a positively evil smirk. It was scary how well it fit his brother's face. "Ohhhhh I see, so how long have you been together fratello?"

Lovino blushed, then smacked his brother on the head, "You idiot! We aren't together, he's just…just a…we're just friends…and even that's stretching it!" Feli rubbed his head and consequently whined about his aching head.

"Aww, Lovi, you think we're friends? I'm so happy~!" The feisty Italian whirled around to see the shitty idiot himself, leaning on the doorway to the bedroom. "Sup!" he said with a salute.

He heard his younger twin giggle and then Antonio chuckled. "Fuck. You. All of you!"

The pirate had the decency to pretend to be ashamed and walked over to the twins. He pulled out a letter and passed it to Feliciano, "Here, mind giving this to Ludwig for me?"

Feli giggled before taking the offered letter, "No problem, Antonio. I guess I'll leave you two then, you must have a lot of business to get to…" He trailed off suggestively and Lovino's eyes flared dangerously. Since when did his brother become so much of a pervert? Did churches teach their kids to have such dirty thoughts?

"Another word and I will rip off your curl," Lovino growled, still leveling his twin with a nasty glare. Feliciano gulped, "S-si…"

Walking his little brother outside, Feliciano spoke up again. "Ve, fratello…what do you think? I…I like Ludwig a lot but I don't want to give it all up at the church. I want to help you more, fratello…"

Lovino gave a long-suffering sigh, "I don't need your help with the stupid church. Doing what you're doing now is enough. And I…" he took a deep breath, "I appreciate it." He said the last part under his breath, making it sound more like unintelligible murmurs but Feli caught the words anyway. Lovino looked back up at his younger twin, "Just…just don't overexert yourself idiot. If you die who's going to bring me all my shit? I don't give a damn if the church changes or not, just stay the way you are, you little dumbass."

Feliciano smiled brightly, "Ve, okay then Lovi!"

"Did I give you fucking permission to call me that?" Lovino barked, but let himself get hugged by his idiot brother nonetheless. "And if that potato-bastard does anything then I'm going to kill him, witch hunt be damned. Got it?"

Feliciano laughed gently at the statement, "I promise nothing's going to happen, fratello!" And with that he left, waving stupidly every few feet before finally disappearing in the dense foliage.

Lovino walked back inside, right into his bedroom, and pulled off some blankets which he threw on the floor. He pulled out a duvet that was kept inside his dresser. A little dusty, but still usable. He put that on his bed and lay down in it.

"For your idiocy, you get to sleep on the floor tonight!" He crossed his arms and closed his eyes. He would not be swayed by that ridiculously adorable- STUPID, STUPID, STUPID, he said stupid not adorable, grin.

Antonio gave the expected response. He whined and groaned. "Ehhhhh, can't I sleep with you Lovi?"

Lovino blushed, "Of course not you pervert bastard!"

The Spaniard persisted, "Can't we cut a deal Lovi? It's coooold!"

Lovino scoffed and glared at him, "We cut a deal with the stupid dance earlier, no more deals!"

The pirate sighed, before relenting and laying himself down on the floor. At least it was better than waking up completely alone as he had done in the last few days. "Good night then Lovi~!"

"Whatever, don't die in your sleep bastard," was the snarky reply back. Antonio could hear angry mutters and could imagine the annoyed scowl on Lovino's face. He nearly laughed out loud when he thought about how funny Lovi could be. He was just so interesting, Antonio couldn't keep his hands off. Whenever he had the chance, he hugged the little Italian to his chest. Lovino was just too cute for his own good. The younger twin was nice but there was just something so _right_ about being with Lovino.

He smiled to himself, and when Lovino fell asleep (which was a few minutes after he made fun of him), he crawled into bed with the cute Italian. There was enough room for two people to fit comfortably. Plus, the blankets on the floor were cold, so Antonio shimmied closer to the source of warmth.

He had to use all of his willpower to not nuzzle into Lovino's hair. For his Lovi's sake he held back. He only hoped that he didn't start hugging the Italian in his sleep, because that tended to happen….sometimes….well, whatever happened it would at least be interesting.

Before he finally knocked out, Antonio ended up caressing the little brunet's face. How could he not? The Italian was the sweetest thing he had ever met. He doubted there would ever be anyone like him. Not even his twin, Feliciano, could compare to his gem of a brother.

"_Buenas noches _Lovi," he whispered. He was ecstatic to hear a quiet and sleepy "Good night" in return.

* * *

...

_Lovino was sitting in the garden, playing with the daisies this time. They refused to tell him where his tomato plants went. He threatened them with a pruning, but they simply laughed. Bastards. He pulled out a nasty little weed before throwing himself onto his back to stare at the cloudy blue sky. _

_He was about to take a nap when he heard someone walking over to him. He turned his head lazily to see Antonio walking over to him. The pirate was smiling as usual, although there was something that was more nervous in his expression. He knelt down beside Lovino, staring down at him with warm green eyes. _

"_Hi Lovi~!" _

_Lovino didn't deign him with a proper reply, only nodding his head. God, Antonio looked so good right now. His hair framed his perfectly chiseled face and the gentle smile he directed towards Lovino made him feel, well, actually loved. Like he was the center of the man's affections rather than his fear and hatred as the little brunet was accustomed to. _

_It was then that he noticed that Antonio was leaning towards him. "What are you doing you-" He was cut off when the Spaniard placed his lips over his. It was strange, but Lovino didn't feel at all inclined to pull away. Instead, he pulled the pirate closer, tangling his fingers in the man's hair. He enjoyed every second, wishing it wouldn't stop, until he realized what would happen if he went through with this. _

"_Shit, what the fuck am I doing?!" _

Lovino woke up with a start, jumping slightly before clinging to the thing closest to him. Which happened to be Antonio. He shrieked.

"What the fuck are you doing in my bed?!" In his attempt to scramble away, he fell off the bed. Pulling himself back up with one arm, he glared at the offending pirate, "Why the hell are you up here?! I told you to sleep on the floor you bastard!"

Antonio yawned, blinking sleepily in a fashion that was oddly endearing. "Hmmm…" then Antonio made an 'o' in surprise, "Oh God, I'm sorry Lovi..." then he smirked, "actually, I'm not, you're really cute when you sleep and I just wanted to cuddle with my cute little tomato!"

Lovino turned red, "You're a fucking pervert, you bastard! Get the hell out of my room asshole!" He threw the thing closest to him at the pirate. Which happened to be a pillow…not the best thing to throw in hindsight.

Antonio sighed dramatically and swatted the pillow away, "No need to get so sensitive Lovi, it was a compliment I swear! And the floor was really cold…"

At that Lovino felt a twinge of guilt. Maybe he shouldn't have forced an injured man to sleep on the floor whilst he slept on top, but goddammit, he was just freaking pissed off and…Lovino sighed resignedly. "What the fuck ever, let's just go get breakfast or something…" he muttered under his breath.

Antonio brightened. "Oh no, don't give me that look!" Lovino growled, "You're still not off the hook!" He brushed himself off and made to move towards the door.

"So grumpy, _mi tomate dulce_!" Antonio stood and grabbed Lovino by the hand. "But aren't you forgetting something?" He leaned forward, coming way too close for comfort.

"N-no, I'm not forgetting anything….n-now get away from me b-bastard…" the Italian stuttered, trying to back away before hitting a wall. Shit. What the fuck was he doing? He was turning red and trying to not think about what he was dreaming about earlier.

"A debt isn't so easily forgotten, remember Lovi~? And a pirate always keeps his promises!" Antonio said brightly, still seeming innocent despite the fact that he was a trapping the smaller male against the wall. His posture wasn't really threatening but Lovino was still inwardly freaking out.

"Don't you fucking dare you b-bastard!" Lovino tried to slide his way out of this but the man held him firmly by the shoulders and kept him pressed against the wall. Shit. Shit he was really, really going to do this wasn't he? He silently called for the surrounding flora to help him, though they weren't the fastest at reacting to these kinds of things. A faster reaction required vocal commands but when he tried to speak, nothing would come out. He closed his eyes and shut his mouth tightly, preparing for the worst. Instead of an insistent kiss on the mouth, he felt gentle lips kiss him tenderly on the forehead. Lovino snapped his eyes open and looked up, confused.

"Awww, my Lovi really _is_ the cutest!" Antonio declared before wrapping the flustered little brunet with his arms.

"S-Shut up, you fucking pervert!" He kicked and shoved rigorously, making the pirate let go of him immediately. Seeing that the pervert was out of breath, Lovino made a beeline for the door.

The bastard was playing with him. He was sure of it. Once he realized who Lovino really was, he'd run for the hills towards the city, probably choosing to seduce his normal brother instead or some other beauty willing to bed the pirate. If anything, this was just a passing affection that Lovino had no intentions of returning. Best not to get too attached. Once bitten twice as shy after all.

...

* * *

...

Feliciano was trotting happily through the streets of Trapani. He was grateful that God had given his dear brother a friend. Or a potential lover. The ditzy brunet couldn't help but smile at the thought. His brother had been alone for far too long, and it was good that he had company, as unconventional as it may be. Antonio looked like a good person, as far as Feliciano's instincts had sensed and his gut had never wronged him yet. The only downside was the fact that he was Ludwig's captain. Although the engineer had only told him good things about the Spaniard, it was the fact that they would be leaving that made Feliciano a little wary about the future.

He shook off those dark thoughts and smiled even more brightly in an attempt to cheer himself up. He then walked into a cozy little bakery. Despite being rather sunny outside, the winds were blowing rather roughly that day. The warmth of the quaint bakery was a welcome change for the young priest-in-training.

"Afternoon Feliciano, how are you today?" the old baker said, respectfully bowing his head despite Feliciano being much younger than him.

"Oh, hello Giovanni! I'm doing fine, thanks! Ve~ How are your cats?" the optimistic man chirped as he picked up the food delivery off the counter. He sighed appreciatively when the sweet smell of pastries wafted into the air.

"Rather fine if I do say myself. Elena's got nine kittens to look after now," Giovanni said while swiftly pulling bread out of the oven. He brushed off his hands and gave Feliciano a kind smile. "If you want, I can give you one of them. The old girl's not going to be able to feed all nine of 'em at the rate they're going."

"Ve~? That'd be great! _Grazie Giovanni_!" he yelled, clapping his hands in enthusiasm. The old baker simply shook his head and chuckled. The boy was one of the few children he had the pleasure of watching grow up. He remembered when the little brunet was 5 and stumbling in the fields. Those children, including Feliciano, were treated as if they were his own, as he was a widow and had no sons to bear his name. It was with muted grief that he heard of the passing of Signore and Signora Vargas. And like the rest, he cursed at the mention of the boy's twin.

The old man gave the chattering boy his change, "Go on boy, back to the church with you now!" He shooed him to the door, "Can't have you slacking on the job now can we?"

"O-of course!" Feliciano bowed, "I'll see you tomorrow Giovanni!" The old man waved happily as Feliciano skipped out the door. He looked at the sky, shading his eyes with his hand. It was already noon. If he didn't hurry, then he would be late for mass! He walked a bit faster back to the church, taking extra care not to drop the bread as he had done many times before.

As he walked, many of the townsfolk waved hello, smiling indulgently at him. He waved back with as much enthusiasm, but his disappointment grew with each person he greeted. Why couldn't the people be as nice to his fratello? He didn't understand how people could be so cruel, they were all God's children right? He wasn't sure anymore, but he hoped that when he became priest, he would be able to change their minds.

Lovino and his Nonno said many times that it was impossible to change the church. It was corrupt by nature, they said. But Feliciano shrugged them off. They would never know if he didn't try! Sure, he was scared but surely things would change with time! After all, he wasn't smart or good at medicine like Lovino, nor was he brave and strong like his Nonno. So this was the least he could do to help.

He stopped at the hill before the church, and looked back. The hill overlooked the city, allowing him a clear view of the bustling city and its crowded port with the shimmering sea beyond even that.

The city was beautiful, despite its rotten origins. Rising in prominence because of a witch trial, the city soon became a source of interest to the church. With Nunzio's influence, wealth was poured into this backwater town. The little houses that used to be the quaint village were extravagant houses that decorated the hills. But there were still impoverished people sitting in small huts near the docks. The marketplace was decorated in various colors, the brightest reds and the deepest blues mixed with specks of yellow. As beautiful as it was, it only reminded him of all the things that Lovino was deprived of. It made him very sad just thinking about it. And then there was his guest.

Ludwig Beilschmidt. German. 21 years old. A year younger than Antonio. The chief engineer of the infamous _Stella _Maris and one of them most wanted men by the church. He didn't identify himself as a crew of the notorious vessel, he only said he was a wandering merchant that went through some bad luck with pirates. As the blonde man was very handsome, the priest agreed to provide Ludwig sanctuary.

"Ve~, Ludwig I'm back!" Feliciano whispered, loud enough for the German to hear. The blonde man looked up from the book he was reading and got out of his chair. His hair was combed back and neat as always. Those piercing blue eyes zeroed in on him when he walked through the door..

"Welcome back, Feliciano," Ludwig replied solemnly with a respectful nod of his head. Feliciano puffed up a cheek before putting the bag gently on the table in front of the German.

"I told you to call me Feli already, ve~," Feliciano pouted, pulling out various groceries from the bag. "So how are your injuries? Do you feel sore anywhere?"

Ludwig shook his head, "No, you've done a very good job taking care of me. I only feel a little tired, but I'm sure I'll be fine soon enough…" He looked at the groceries, "Allow me to help you put these away."

The little Italian shook his head quickly, "No, no! You're still healing, I'll put it away." He held up some sweet bread, "If you're good and stay put I'll give you some~!" The bright smile on his face made one appear on the serious German's face as well.

"Very well, I will stay put." Feliciano made a pleased sound, and placed the food in neat little cabinets in the corner of his room. It was a little larger than his peers, as the priest seemed to have taken a shine to him. There were two beds, but only one was actually used. The first time the little clergyman curled up into bed with Ludwig, the German almost squealed in surprise. He did it often so as to catch the German off guard; it was just too fun to not tease the stoic German. Unfortunately, it became so common that it wasn't so strange anymore, just normal.

The day Feliciano found the German pirate was when he had gone down to the docks to pick up supplies from Giovanni for his brother. He took a shortcut through the dock and found the man half-dead in an alleyway. The poor man looked so hurt that Feliciano just _had_ to help. So he took him up to the church where he regained consciousness and claimed sanctuary. Being one of Nunzio's favorites, he was entrusted with the task of keeping an eye on the man.

Despite his reservations and how intimidating the German was, Ludwig made very good company. Not once has he regretted taking in the muscular blonde, although he began worrying more and more lately. Ever since they had discovered this…chemistry between them, things started to get a little confusing.

Nonno wasn't happy when he found out, but he said he would take care of the loose ends. Despite the church's warnings against such relationships, Feliciano couldn't bring himself to care.

Ludwig wrapped an arm around him and kissed him on the back of the neck. He flushed slightly at the contact but turned to smile warmly at the German. Okay, so he had a confession to make. He may have, maybe, perhaps, found Ludwig a little bit more than just a few days ago. Ludwig had actually claimed three weeks ago, a little before the time Antonio apparently arrived. He said something about a big battle and he was separated from the group. It seemed that Antonio's crew had been searching for him only to later lose the captain as well. It was only until Feliciano received a letter from his brother did he realize that there were more pirates stranded in Trapani.

The letter that Feliciano got from said pirate captain was something of a secret. It was all in code when they opened it and the brunet wasn't allowed to stand over Ludwig as he deciphered, memorized, then burned the note. The only thing that Ludwig would tell him was that there was a sympathizer here in Trapani that might be able to smuggle the pirates out. That is, if they managed to establish contact and that this sympathizer wasn't some traitor helping the church.

And since then, Ludwig had been trying to convince Feliciano of leaving the church the moment he got the chance. Yet even with all of the church's heinous actions, he couldn't bring himself to leave. He had a duty to his brother, his family, to change things. Coward he may be, but he could be as stubborn as a bull if he wanted to. Feliciano dreaded that day, for when Ludwig would have to leave. He prayed for a solution, but none seemed to come.

"Feliciano." The aforementioned German turned him around to look at him concernedly. "Is there something wrong?"

He shook his head, "Ve, nothing is wrong…"

The blonde narrowed his eyes and then sighed, "You can tell me anything Feliciano," he said, intertwining their fingers, "Don't you trust me?"

"Of course I do, ve~, but I…I don't want you to leave!" Feliciano threw his arms around the German, "Don't go, you can stay here with me! I..I can help you settle here, and I'll get out of the church so we can be together and we'll start a bakery just like old Giovanni downtown…"

Ludwig held the distraught Italian tightly, "I cannot stay here, I have a brother too that's waiting for me…Please, come with me instead, I will take care of you and Lovino if you will only let me."

Feliciano sniffed and looked up at the man, "Y-you know that's not possible…the church is after him and, and…." He buried his face into the man's shirt. "I'll never be able to go on knowing if you or fratello got hurt!"

"I'll protect you! You and your brother, I'll make sure you two are safe. I will not let the church touch either of you, I would rather die first," he said tightly, hugging his dearest closer to him. His eyes lit up with determination, "Come with me, please." Those blue eyes looked upon him with such conviction that Feliciano almost said yes. But he's seen those eyes before. In his father, his mother, and remembered what had happened to them, what they sacrificed.

"I can't…" Feliciano whispered, extricating himself from the embrace and looked at the blazing sun moving across the sky. "I have to go to mass….I'm sorry Ludwig…" he sniffled. The German gently held his face and kissed the tears away.

The sad smile on Ludwig's face made the Italian's heart clench painfully, "Then I will convince you when you return, be sure of that." He kissed him again, this time gently upon the lips. Feliciano returned it. The kiss threatened to get a little too heated before Ludwig managed to pull away. "Go, before they wonder where you have gone." Feliciano nodded, giving the German one last peck before leaving.

He wiped his face, clearing it of any possible sign from the previous exchange. He walked as calmly as he could down the halls of the opulent cathedral. It had various paintings of angels and saints, and a significant number were portraits of the Bishop Nunzio. The vaulted ceilings were held up by ornate columns and buttresses. Roses were one of the most common motifs around the cathedral though, it decorated almost every hall in vases, paintings and mosaics. The windows were almost as tall as the walls and the ones in the main hall were all of precious stained glass. Everything was spotless as servants worked tirelessly to keep the cathedral clean. Among all this beauty, he walked with purpose towards the main hall, readying himself for the scolding that would surely come for appearing late for mass. The doors were enormous; and intricately carved with lilies sprouting upward to form the Virgin Mary on the door.

He was about to open the door when a familiar voice called out to him.

"My son, wait a moment!" The brunet turned to see Bishop Nunzio himself walking towards him. He steeled himself, remembering how cruel the man was on that fateful day in the forest. He was wearing flowing red robes with a gold trim, a little fancy but the man could afford the luxury. The old bishop smiled warmly at him, "I want to introduce you to Sadiq Adnan." He gestured to a tall man with an eerie white mask obscuring his face. He was wearing a dusty, green cloak with the hood up, despite being in a church. Underneath the cloak was a double-breasted dark green jacket accompanied by a tan scarf, both looking rather worn from the journey. At his side was a fairly large sword that was slightly curved and was strapped to his belt.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, little one," the man said smoothly, taking Feliciano's hand and kissing it. The boy couldn't suppress a small shudder.

"N-nice to meet you too Signore Adnan, w-what brings you here to our humble city?" Feliciano said, trying his best to keep the stuttering and trembling to a minimum. This man had an eerie aura; it frightened him and made him want to run far, far away. The bishop seemed to have picked up on his discomfort and interjected before Sadiq could say more.

"You see, Signore Adnan is here to clean up our city by the Vatican. They highly recommended him and with his help, I hope to rid our streets of those filthy heathens that pollute our great city!" the old man said enthusiastically. Then the old man looked around and leaned in closer, his voice lowering to a conspiratorial whisper, "He says he has a very _extensive_ experience with witches." Feliciano pretended to be overjoyed by the news and gave a strained smile.

"T-that's wonderful news, Father!" Feliciano squeaked, hoping the conversation would end soon. The man was eyeing him like a fresh piece of meat.

"Yes, I look forward to it," Sadiq said and refocused his attention on Feliciano, "I do hope I will be able to see you again my dear," he smiled, but it was not comforting in the slightest. Feliciano's trembling became more pronounced at that. The look in the man's eyes, his tone, his cold smile, it frightened him. Like he was a hapless mouse who happened to be caught by the insidious snake.

"Y-yes, well, I am late for mass..." Feliciano said nervously, then he bowed deeply to the bishop, "Please excuse me."

"Of course, go on my boy and try not to be late this time, yes?" the bishop admonished lightly, wagging a finger at him. Nunzio turned to the strange man, "How about I show you more of our church? And then we can get you settled in?"

"I would be delighted," Sadiq replied, suave as ever. Their voices were silenced as soon as Feliciano closed the door. He let out a silent breath of relief, he didn't like this man. He had a really, really bad feeling. And as far as gut instincts went, Feliciano had never been wrong before. He kneeled in one of the front pews, _Dear God, please, please let that man get a stomachache so he can go far, far away from here! _

* * *

**...Ahhhh, so things are beginning to get serious. That's right, plot will take a big leap forward after this chapter so look forward to it. Part of me is considering mass deleting stuff because the pacing doesn't feel right so I'll just tell you ahead of time that the next update might be a little delayed. That and chapters will be significantly longer, as in more or less this length. If you guys feel it's too long, then go ahead and say so by PM or review and I'll try to cut/pace things better. **

**For those who don't know, Sadiq Adnan = Turkey, you know...guy with the creepy white mask and is always chasing little kids? That guy. **

**Please drop a review on your way out and thank you for leaving reviews for last chapter and following/favoriting/actually-reading-this-monster-of-a-story. We've reached thirty followers recently! So *throws confetti* Thanks a bunch, and remember this. I HEART YOU (3) EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU ARE MY PEOPLE AND I HEART YOU GUYS. **


	5. The Queen of Elphame

**As you can probably tell, this chapter is a lot shorter, missing the extra 1,000 - 2,000 or something words that the last chapter had. That and the pacing in this one is a little strange. But I'm going to be moving the plot along now so I had to put this in somehow and well, that and I'm not a very good writer, but I wanted to fit this arc in. ****That's enough of my excuses though. And one more thing, I know at the beginning I tried responding to every reviewer, but as I did I felt I was coming off as kind of creepy so I stopped. Like seriously, I feel like I'm scaring you guys away. If you have a question about the story, I'll reply or just a question in general that doesn't sound rhetorical. **

**OH and another thing. *Throws confetti in the air* THANK YOU FOR REVIEWING 3 We've hit the 20 review mark and I have never been more proud. Again, I 3 you guys. Your reviews make me flail and scream in happiness. I can reply to each review I get if you guys don't think its creepy. I don't want to creep people out. Is it the way I right or...? Whatever, let's get to the story already! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own APH! **

* * *

**Chapter 4: The Queen of Elphame**

Lovino woke up in bed, realizing that the Spaniard had climbed in again. Except this time, he was lying on top of Antonio, his head initially resting on the man's chest. If this wasn't awkward enough, the idiot was holding him at his lower back with his hands just inches from his rear. Lovino turned red, and slapped at the man's chest though it was rather half-hearted with him so close to the bastard.

"L-let me go, fucker!" Antonio snored some more. "Get up you lazy asshole!" Antonio groaned before tightening his hold on Lovino and rolling over to his side, the Italian was utterly mortified. "G-goddammit, I swear if you're awake I'm going to-"

Antonio yawned, opening one eye to look blearily at the other. "Mmmm, Lovi..?" Seeing the pirate like this, sleepy and slightly disheveled, was definitely not sexy at all. Nope. It was fucking annoying and it made him want to hit the bastard.

"Let go of me, asshat!" Antonio blinked.

"No," he said matter-of-factly and clung to the adorable Italian tighter. "Go back to sleep, _mi querido_."

"Get the fuck off me!"

He whined, "Don't feel like it…Can't we sleep just a little longer?" He ran a hand through the Italian's hair, briefly tapping that damned curl. If Lovino wasn't red and flushing before, he was now. G-g-goddammit! It took all his willpower not to gasp or curl inwards from embarrassment. Thank god Antonio was an idiot. At least the bastard's hands weren't resting so close to his ass, or else the herbalist might have lost it. But considering that he decided to keep a hand in his hair and another hand on his back to keep him from escaping, Lovino was already very close to just going batshit crazy on the asshole.

"S-stop touching me, you b-bastard!" he squeak- er- yelled back in a very manly manner. "T-those plants won't water themselves!" Antonio just whined again.

"The plants can wait can't they? Please Lovi?" He was too fucking close, just too close. Hell his lips were brushing his forehead and he could feel his breathe all over his face and it was just fucking...embarrassing! He was a man dammit! He definitely wasn't giving in to this fucking cuddle fest this cute…stupid, bastard pirate!

It was only after Abel ran in that Lovino was able to escape the cuddle of doom. Not like it was cuddling. He swore up and down that the man was practically squeezing the life out of him and if he didn't call for help then he wouldn't get away. Besides, it was morning and obviously Lovino was too tired to get out of the hug-er attempted murder so easily. No, he's not weak at all! No, he didn't enjoy it either you perverts! He just…didn't want to bother anyone so early in the morning because everyone might have been asleep.

It was almost afternoon you say?

….Well fuck you too!

Breakfast or lunch or whatever, went on as it usually did. Which means that it was annoyingly loud and unnecessarily violent. After finding Antonio with him, Abel made it even more of a point to glare and talk about how useless he was.

"S-so, how do you like your waffles?" Anri said, timidly trying to break the glaring contest between Antonio and Abel.

"It's fine the way they are," the pirate said offhandedly, not taking his eyes off of the fuming sprite before him. He was still smiling like an idiot, but there was something sharp in his gaze.

"Like hell it is, go get the syrup or fruit in the backyard or something," Abel said, blowing smoke rings into the pirate's face like it was nobody's business.

And of course, poor Lovino had to sit right in the middle of that. He was trying to just eat his goddamn food but of course the idiots had to pull this passive-aggressive stuff and whatnot.

"Ah, um, why don't we all gather some fruit together and I can-"

"Lovino and I can do it," And since when did he say he would volunteer? He smiled charmingly at Anri, "Don't you go working out there on his behalf." He gave a pointed glance at the steaming blonde man.

"Like hell you're going there with Lovino. Get it yourself bastard, it's time you started actually doing something to earn your stay."

"Oh? I've just gotten around to healing and I've already been helping you with food and cleaning. I don't see what else there could be to do around here."

"Well-"

Lovino had had enough and before the two could say anything, he shoved waffles in both their faces. "Shut the fuck up and eat your goddamn breakfast already!"

The looks on their faces nearly made him laugh. Nearly. And then Antonio went back to being a dopey idiot. "Okay then Lovi~!" And whether it was to spite Abel or he was just being his usual bastard self, he dragged the young Italian into a warm embrace and ended up dragging the herbalist into his lap.

"Bastard…" Abel growled, getting all but ready to throw his plate and silverware at the pirate, Lovino being held there or no. That is, until Anri put a hand over his curled fist and shook her head. She smiled warmly at him, "Let them have their fun. Don't be such a stick in the mud!" She flicked him playfully on the forehead and he, thankfully, backed down.

"Lovi, you're as cute as ever! Will you go out to pick fruits with me?" Antonio asked, nuzzling his face in the other's hair.

"Fuck no! And I will never, ever be cute you bastard! I am manly as fuck, so I'm handsome and shit! Not cute!" he screamed, turning completely red.

"Aww, mi tomate really is the cutest thing ever!"

"I am not a fucking tomato!"

* * *

Antonio was sitting at the dining table with Lovino. At the moment, he was cleaning his cutlass and checking on his weapons for what felt like the 30th time. The young Italian had finally deemed him trustworthy enough to let him have his weapons again. Saying something along the lines of 'you're too stupid to actually know how to use them properly anyway'. After that particularly eventful morning, Lovino actually did go out to pick fruit with him. The other two sprites weren't here, thank god. Anri was fine but Abel was a pain in the ass. They went out on some sort of business that Lovino refused to tell him about. He supposed he wouldn't say much of it for now. He'd find out eventually one way or another.

His customary captain's coat and hat were hung on one of the hooks beside the door. As they were deemed too gaudy to wear when they were out in the rough-and-tumble forest, he chose to not wear it for the duration of his stay. So he pretty much stuck with his usual clothes: a leather jerkin over a clean shirt (thanks to his cute Lovi) and simple trousers. The boots were the only pain putting on each day, but for the most part, it wasn't necessary to lace them up every single time since it wasn't as dangerous for him as it was on a moving ship. He looked up discreetly to admire the beautiful man before him.

Lovino was pretty yes, with his messy chestnut hair and ever-changing eyes (he still couldn't tell what color they were exactly). He was sorely tempted to pull that wayward curl sticking out, but the herbalist insisted he didn't with such fervor he decided to back down…for now. It didn't really help stop the undeniable attraction he had towards the other though when those trousers seemed to show off the brunet's perky ass. Just all the more reason to admire the Italian (much to Lovino's displeasure).

But beyond that pretty face was the herbalist's spirit. He had a hardworking nature and a sharp tongue to boot. He never backed down, even when it was Antonio himself, and was just so, so…heart-achingly sweet, despite his foul language. He'd seen how he'd take care of his strange friends, compliments hidden behind harsh words and warnings slipped beneath tame insults. Even with his time on the seas, Antonio had never met anyone with such passion. And if there's one person that might be able to out-stubborn him, it's Lovino.

He watched as the Italian fervently wrote down notes, occasionally looking at his texts for reference. He stuck out the tip of his tongue in concentration, a darling little habit that the pirate refused to comment on because the little brunet would stop doing it just to scorn him.

He chuckled to himself, but Lovino heard it. Did he mention the other had an uncanny way of knowing he was doing something he shouldn't? "Bastard, what are you laughing at?"

"Nothing, nothing…but if you wanted to steal my attention so badly you could have simply asked, _mi amorcito_." Lovino scoffed at the endearment and rolled his eyes before going back to work.

After another few minutes of silence, Antonio broke it again. "So what are you working on there?"

Lovino gave a long-suffering sigh, "It's notes for medicine. Now stop bothering me."

Antonio ignored him and pulled away the sheet he was working on. He furrowed his brow, and looked quizzically at the fuming Italian, "Why use belladonna of all things? It's poisonous."

Lovino huffed, "Belladonna can be used for cramps and shit. Mixing it with the right stuff can make it work as a painkiller too, so it's pretty damn useful aside from killing people."

Antonio lit up, "Oh? How about dandelions?"

The Italian answered immediately, "Tonics and for cleaning wounds out."

The pirate whistled, "Well, you sure know your plants don't you Lovi?"

"Of course, dumbass. If I didn't you'd be dead by now," he snapped, but he puffed up proudly. It wasn't often that the Italian actually praised himself. A pity that he didn't have more confidence.

"Ummm," Antonio's eyes widened a bit when he saw it, "How about hemlock? Pretty sure that's a favorite for nobles and the clergy if you know what I mean."

Lovino scowled at this, "It's _eastern_ hemlock, idiot. It's harmless, the tea I just gave you has it. It's completely healthy and good for open wounds, keeps it from getting an infection." He turned away with a bitter smile. "A lot of people give it a bad name just because it has the word 'hemlock' in it. If people bothered to actually fucking look at it there'd be a lot less dead people out there. Stubborn assholes, every one of them. Sometimes, I wonder why I even bother trying…" The last part sounded more like something to himself.

It was times like these that all Antonio wanted to do was hold the other until the sadness faded from his face. Or crush the person that made him so bitter. He wasn't a fool; it was easy to see that the church, probably Trapani, had done this. Stigmatized him or branded him as an outcast for some reason. But since being violent wasn't going to help matters here, he put down his cutlass and pulled a seat right next to Lovino.

He wrapped the other into a gentle hug, letting the Italian lean onto his chest. For once, the brunet didn't protest. He brushed a hand through the other's hair, avoiding the tempting curl, "Heh, well Lovi, people just love to deny things they can't understand. That's what makes them fools I suppose. There's nothing that can really be done for those types of people, they're deaf, blind and dumb to the plain truth. But why worry about them? You should worry more about yourself."

Lovino pushed away his hand, "It's…it's complicated. I don't want to talk about this right now."

Antonio made a humming sound, contemplating, "Well we have time. I'm not going anywhere Lovi." Then he smiled down at the Italian, "After all, you're coming with me right?"

Lovino snorted, "Like hell I'm gonna go with you. I hear pirates die by the dozens these days."

"Aww, don't you have faith in me? I'll always protect my cute little Lovi~!" He snuggled in the small brunet's soft hair.

"I. Am. Not. Yours! Now let me go! I have a lot of fucking work to do and I don't need you hanging off my arm like some leech!" the little herbalist barked.

Antonio smirked, "But you're the one who's clinging to me, Lovi."

Lovino blushed furiously, and twisted around to glare at the man. "Let go before I fucking castrate you, pervert bastard!"

With a snort and another mischievous smirk, he let go of the struggling Italian. "Whatever you say, _mi querido_. You know you love me!"

He ducked and ran off when Lovino threw his pen at him. He laughed out loud for the brunet to hear, "No matter what you say, I'm not leaving until you come with me Lovi!"

* * *

This time, they were lying underneath the stars. For some odd reason or the other, Lovino let the idiot accompany him out here. The idiot was blabbing on and on about constellations and what not. Not like he was listening to it or anything. Because everything Antonio said was probably bullshit.

"Look, there's Draco. And Cygnus is over there, see that bright little star right there?" Antonio pointed to some random star in millions.

"How do you even find these things? It's like looking for a needle in a haystack!" Lovino said, frustrated. He was still trying to find Capricorn damn it!

Antonio laughed, "It's not difficult, you just learn to find the brighter stars, like the Dog Star and Polaris and branch out from there. They change with the seasons, but whenever a constellation comes back it always takes the same place in the sky."

"Sounds way too complicated for you, idiot," Lovino scoffed and he sat up. "What's that bright one?"

Antonio sat up and slung an arm over his shoulder. "It's Polaris, the North Star. That's the one that we always use to regain our bearings. It's always there, sitting in the direction of the north. Like a shining compass that guides us in the sky."

"Really?" Lovino said thoughtfully. He then snorted, "Why the hell do you need to name all those other stars? Sounds pretty damn complicated to me."

"Don't be so quick to judge! They've helped me from getting hopelessly lost countless times!" and he smiled fondly at the little Italian, "And even though we kind of crashed, there's no way I would have been able to meet you if I hadn't been following them!"

"The fuck? You call almost dying and being picked up by me a miracle? Bastard, I'm your worst nightmare," Lovino grumbled, but not before flushing slightly at the strange compliment.

The pirate looked at him and said with utmost seriousness, "You are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me, Lovino." He turned completely scarlet at that and was at a loss of what to say.

It was then that Antonio decided to lay himself down in the other's lap. He snickered when Lovino flinched. "What the hell are you doing?" he screeched.

The bastard just shrugged, "It's easier to see the stars this way, and my Lovi is so soft and squishy!" He poked the indignant Italian in the stomach, "You're just like a cute, squishy, red tomato!"

"Go to hell, asshole!" He pinched the bastard's cheeks roughly. "What makes you think you have the right to sleep in my lap!?"

"Eghha puurr Looooovi!" Lovino let go because the idiot sounded even more stupid with the mumbling. The pirate sat up and rubbed his cheeks.

"That really hurts Lovi…how could you?" he cried out, making those puppy dog eyes at him. Lovino held out for a good few minutes. Then back it was for Antonio to lying down on his fucking lap. Bastard was just so annoying he had to do it or else he would annoy him for the rest of the evening. He most definitely did not play with the pirate's hair or any of that girly shit. He was just making sure that the idiot didn't drop his filthy head bugs into his lap and stuff.

He was happy to say that he found none. Which is good news because he won't have to disinfect his clothes. But…he grudgingly admitted that Antonio's hair was actually nice and soft. Like a girl's, which was bad enough with the messy ponytail the pirate tended to keep it in. It was way too girly, but Antonio refused to cut it.

It wasn't long before the stupid pirate fell asleep. Zoning out as soon as Lovino began to play with his hair and the Italian didn't realize the bastard was asleep until he thought about how quiet the night was. He looked down at that peaceful looking face.

He poked the bastard's nose, but he was out like a light. Lovino sighed, and tried to turn his attention to something else. But no matter how he tried to distract himself, he ended up looking back to the pirate's face. He should wake Antonio up so they can go back, it was getting late. But he couldn't bring himself to disturb the sleeping man. It seemed like a crime to even think of doing so.

He leaned over slightly to caress that face, almost as if he were in a trance. He stopped right before touching the man's cheek. He smiled bitterly at the man before turning his gaze to the sky. Antonio was…kind. And patient. And so goddamn happy that it was difficult for even him, the permanently angry Lovino, to stay angry. God, he didn't see how Antonio had put up with him.

He shook his head, why was he even thinking about this? Antonio was a pirate and a bastard, pervert pirate to boot. It didn't matter who Antonio liked or disliked because he shouldn't give a damn. So he ignored the fluttery feelings and muddled thoughts to push over the sleepy idiot and drag him home.

* * *

The days passed like a blur. It was normal and not normal at the same time. It had been five days since Feliciano left with Antonio's letter and lo and behold, a carrier pigeon returned with a reply from the potato bastard. Since then, the pirate had been writing nonstop. At times, he would wander off with a thoughtful expression on his face and not pay attention to where he was going. Thus forcing Lovino to have to walk with him so the idiot wouldn't get lost. The herbalist wondered vaguely when the pirate would have to go, as it was already two days past the two week mark.

Not like he would miss him or anything! But….but he was just used to the bastard being around and being stupid and cu- and s-stupid. And he was just kind of used to having him around and talking and stuff even though it was about the stupidest shit and…fine, you win. He was going to maybe, kinda, sort of, somewhat, m-miss him. He liked being at the beach with someone, listening to someone who actually lived outside this prison and someone that actually seemed able to endure his company. So yeah, maybe he'd miss all that just a teensy, weensy bit. The Spaniard was still a bastard though. A really shitty, perverted bastard.

And to add to all this, Lovino was getting a little antsy. And it wasn't just because Antonio was spreading his own anxiety with the letters' contents or his eventual departure, but because the herbalist thought he saw telltale signs of _her_. Now was definitely not a good time for her to show up and he sincerely hoped that he was wrong and just being paranoid. The leaves were falling off prematurely, the animals were more skittish than usual, and the flowers were whispering nervously to each other. Normal summer weather…right? Bullshit.

It was clear that _she_ was going to appear and he didn't like it one bit. She hadn't bothered him in months, so why the hell did she want to come back now? Regardless if he was mistaken or not, he had taken the necessary precautions of course, placed milk thistle all over the area and Lukas' old warding stones, though he didn't know how much they'd help against her. He told Abel and Anri and they decided to ask for advice from a few friends. Leaving him alone with the pirate. Again. He made sure to stick to the idiot's side 24/7, which led to Antonio thinking he wanted his company and for some odd reason, he was even more energetic and char- annoying. If that was possible.

At the moment, they were inside the cottage and enjoying a cup of tea. Or more like Antonio was grinning while Lovino threw around a few insults.

"Okay, okay," Antonio said, and put up his hands in surrender, "I'll give you that one, but if anything, you'll be free to move and actually see the world. Aren't you tired of this place?"

"Why do you keep asking that? I said I'm fine living here," Lovino retorted, "Try coming up with something new and actually convincing."

"Well," Antonio sipped his tea thoughtfully before answering, "How about escaping the church?"

Lovino spat out his tea at that, "W-what do you mean? Why would I want to run from the church?"

Antonio raised an eyebrow at him, "Judging from your reaction and the fact that you don't like religion is one thing. The other giveaway is how you're living in a cottage isolated from the city in the forest, where it would be difficult to find you."

Lovino was speechless. So Antonio continued, "I promise, if you come with me than I'll protect you and you'll be free. Free of hiding here underneath the church's shadow."

The herbalist remained silent. "I know quite well what it means to be hunted by the church. Trust me, another wanted man is no burden me or my crew can't handle." Antonio smiled bitterly, "We're all wanted men, trying to bring down this corrupt house of worship."

The Italian stayed quiet for a moment, thinking. "Why the fuck are you so set on taking me with you? On trying to…trying to 'save' me?"

Antonio took a moment before answering, "Because I need a medic for my crew. And maybe because of the church, I've always wanted to take something or someone from them. But most of all, it's because…I really like you a lot Lovino." _I like you more than I should,_ Antonio thought to himself inwardly.

Lovino turned his head away, "Why do you hate the church so much?" Antonio looked surprised at this, but Lovino continued, "I mean aside from the corruption and them being a bunch of lazy fatasses and hypocrites."

Antonio stared at him, "Why do you want to know?"

Lovino turned to him, a stony glare on his face, "Because I think it's about time I know what kind of person I'm dealing with. The church usually has a pretty good fucking reason for putting a person on their blacklist. Aside from witch prosecution and all that shit, the people they hunt deserve it more often than not. Murderers, thieves, those are the types of people that get wanted, what's your crime?"

Antonio pinned him with a strange look. It made Lovino feel a little uncomfortable at the intensity of the stare, maybe he shouldn't have asked? The man tapped the hilt of his cutlass, a habit that he had when he was thinking. He had taken to wearing the thing much more now. He'd insisted that it was Lovino's safety, and after days of whining and being a general nuisance Lovino permitted him to wear it round his belt. But he did make sure Anri, Abel or some other flower was there to watch the pirate twenty four-seven. Just in case.

"If you mean I deserve to be hunted for surviving then yes. I suppose I do deserve to be blacklisted and forever chased by the church's dogs," Antonio spat out bitterly. Lovino flinched at the venom in his voice, even though it wasn't directed at him it was still a little unnerving. Who wouldn't feel that way with the super smiley pirate being all gloomy and serious for once?

When Lovino didn't answer Antonio continued, "I came from a small town in Spain you know. But it was burned down by the church because we refused to give them all of our crops, our livelihood, and our women, for the sake of funding their efforts to 'bring salvation to the world'. To the world, we were demons and the church was right to destroy us. I'm the only one who survived to tell the truth." The aura around the pirate dimmed, his eyes dull with unspoken grief. "They're never coming back, my parents and my sister…their lives can never be replaced."

Lovino felt guilty. Well, the idiot had baggage too. And because he's just so fucking nice, he didn't bother interrupting. And he may have somewhat sort of pulled his seat over to sit next to Antonio. Just because the little fucker seemed so damn upset that he was scared the pirate would break the teacup in his grip. Seriously, tupperware was fucking difficult to replace!

Antonio's lips twitched upwards when he saw Lovino sit close to him. But he continued in a grave voice, "I ended up with an…interesting group of thugs. I joined as a pirate of the _Stella Maris_. I eventually became captain. And, well, I traveled the world and picked up new people, new comrades that I could rely on. Wherever we went, wherever we hunted or raided, it was where the church stood strong. I made a few enemies along the way, but I lived and I haven't regretted it yet."

Lovino was at a loss for words. So he spat out the first thing that came to mind, "I'm sorry."

The Spaniard looked at him in surprise, "Eh? What are you sorry for Lovi?"

The herbalist blushed and looked away, "I-I shouldn't have asked. I didn't think you'd have so much fucking baggage. I….I'm sorry, okay?!"

Antonio was speechless, not thinking the herbalist would apologize. Heck, he was expecting some sort of insult, but it seemed his darling had surprised him again. Lovino turned to see him staring again, and turned pink from embarrassment, "I'm going to pick some tomatoes, they're getting ripe." He tried to get up, but Antonio grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him down roughly into his lap.

Lovino squeaked and his curl twitched. It twitched! Antonio hugged him tightly, rubbing his cheek against the other's, "You're so cute _mi tomate_, I didn't know you cared so much about me!"

"T-that's…" Lovino stammered, "I just…Whatever! I'm going out, you bastard!"

He pulled away from the hug and made a break for the door. He groaned when he realized that Antonio was following him. "Eh? Wait up Lovi!"

"Fuck no!" Lovino ran outside and was about to run into the forest when he caught himself. He cursed. How could he have been so careless? He made to go back into the house, as it was definitely safer than staying in the open with that woman making her rounds, but he bumped into the stupid pirate instead.

He felt arms wrap around him, "Lovi! Did you decide to come back to me after all?" Antonio smiled down at him, his eyes flashing with mirth. In contrast, Lovino could practically feel the malevolent aura coming from the forest. The wind was starting to blow furiously, with the leaves swirling around them ominously.

Lovino's mouth felt dry, "Get inside, now."

"What? Lovi what's wrong?" Antonio looked down at him concernedly.

The little Italian tried to push him back inside the house, "Get inside already! It's dangerous, she's coming!"

Antonio refused to budge and held Lovino closer, "Who is it Lovino? Let me handle this."

That's when the herbalist went into hysterics, "No, you dumbass! Just listen to me for once! You can't fight this, she's-"

"She's what, my dear witch?" Lovino jumped and gingerly turned to see the exact woman he didn't want to see. For all intents and purposes, she seemed normal. And by normal, she looked human, and a ridiculously beautiful one at that. Her hair was wavy, and so fair it was almost white. She wore a dark green dress with flowing sleeves and a gold trim around the edges. It was a completed with an elegant gold belt that wrapped twice around her thin waist that helped accentuate her curves. Around her neck was a glowing pendant, with a large opal at its center.

She seemed to exude a bright light that put all other things to shame. Everything seemed dead and lifeless around her. Then again, it was probably because that light was indeed sucking the vitality out of everything around her.

She smiled at Lovino, "My dear, why so frightened?" She tried to walk over to him, but was pushed back by the protective circle around the house. She frowned. "Why have you taken such precautions against me darling? I don't mean to cause you harm. I'm only here to see my lovely fellow witch."

Lovino turned away from Antonio, unable to bring himself to look at his face. "I-I can't let you in right now. I…" he chanced a glance at the pirate behind him. The Spaniard's expression was blank, undecipherable. "I need to get rid of him first. Y-you said that you disliked the scent of humans right?"

"Hmm, is that what I said?" she tapped her chin thoughtfully, "But I like the pretty ones. And you've reeled in such a handsome morsel, how could I resist? Now," she said, her voice lowering dangerously, and her hands pressed against the barrier, "won't you let me in?"

"Lovino, what's the meaning of this?" Lovino shivered when he felt a heavy hand tighten on his shoulder. Antonio's voice was low, angry. Whether his anger was directed at him or Nicnevin he didn't know. "Can you explain what's happening?"

"I-I can't…" Lovino stammered.

She smiled widely at him, so much that his cheeks were starting to hurt just from looking at her. And then there were her eyes, which were widening to an impossible size. "Oh Lovino, Lovino, you have no idea what you've done have you? Ah well, I suppose it doesn't matter, what's done is done and I'm afraid I'll have to take him."

"N-no….No, I-!" He flinched when Antonio tightened his arms around him. "A-Antonio?" he stammered, he tried to turn around but the pirate held him fast. The Italian could hear the telltale whisper of a blade being pulled out of its sheath. The little brunet steeled himself for the inevitable.

Antonio murmured something but the herbalist couldn't hear it over the rapidly crumbling barrier. "Lovino, I-"

The Spaniard's voice was cut off when the barrier completely broke down. The runes were cracked and smoldering from the force. Lovino screamed, and was shocked when Antonio pulled him close, holding him protectively to his chest. The pirate had held and angled them so that Lovino was slightly behind the man, while Antonio faced the witch himself. He brandished his cutlass at the woman, "Don't come any closer," Antonio hissed.

The witch laughed lightly at him. She sounded like one of those rich old ladies Antonio would sometimes pass by, except her laugh was accompanied by the sound of razors. "Hah, you're nothing to me maggot. Know your place!"

She turned her gaze on the half-hidden boy behind the pirate. "Though I can see that this is why you were reluctant to give him to me." She smiled at him, a smile that was as horrible as it was beautiful. "Sorry sweetheart, but it can't be helped. Do you have any idea what you've done? No, of course you don't. But I'm afraid he can't live now that it's happened."

Lovino snapped out of his terrified trance, "W-what are you talking about? No! You can't, I won't let you!" At the statement, Antonio tightened his hold on the younger man. If the Italian had looked, he would have seen the small smile that graced the pirate's face at the statement.

"_Si, _if that's what my Lovi wants, then I can't comply with your wishes milady," Antonio added in that usual sing-song voice of his. That dangerous edge was still present in his voice.

The woman's smile turned sour. "Let's not make this more difficult now, my dear. If you won't give him to me than it'll only be worse for you. It's all in _our _best interests dearie."

She raised a hand and made a vertical slashing gesture. He felt himself get blown away from Antonio and he landed harshly into a patch of rhododendron. "Antonio!" He pulled himself up just in time to see the pirate try to run after him before attempting to slash at the witch that stood in his way. It seemed as if his strike came true, as the woman leaned forward, grasping at the wound. But she made another slashing motion with her free hand, a horizontal motion this time.

Lovino watched in horror as the ground opened up underneath the pirate and screamed when the Spaniard was falling into the gap. "NO! ANTONIO!" he screamed.

At the last second, before he disappeared, he saw the man mouth the words, 'I'm sorry'.

Lovino ran over to where the man fell. The cracks had closed up and were sealed as if they never appeared. But he still tried to dig through it, hoping that somehow he would find the Spaniard.

The woman stood erect once more, the sword wound now completely gone. She turned to him, the eerie smile no longer stretched across her face. She was still smiling, but it was sad and almost pitying in a way. "My child, there was no way I could let him live. After letting him come here, I'm sure his presence has already tainted this sacred place." When he didn't respond, only offering a defiant glare, she pursed her lips, "One day, you will understand. You'll learn to see things my way." And with those words she turned away, disappearing in a flash of light and burning a circle into the garden. He could still hear their pained screams as he tried to take care of them the best that he could.

He slammed a fist into the ground. "Antonio, Antonio come back…" He felt tears well up in his eyes and hugged himself. "God, Antonio I'm so sorry…"

He clutched his shoulders. He couldn't believe it. Just couldn't. This really was all his fault…if he wasn't like this…then Nicnevin would never have pestered him in the first place…God he was such a fucking idiot! Stupid, stupid, stupid!

He sat like that for a while, trying to pull himself together, when a hand gently touched his shoulder. "Cici…we're awfully late aren't we?" Lovino looked up to see Abel and Anri, all torn up and injured.

"W-what, what happened?!" Lovino pulled himself up and took Anri's hand in his. It was covered in bloody cuts.

It was Abel's turn to speak, "They snuck up on us. Little bastards were allied with Nicnevin. This is why you never trust bilberries*, they're all traitorous cowards!"

Anri leaned slightly on Lovino, "You see, when you told us about Nicneven, we went to the Black Marshes. We asked around the cattails with a lead that came to the bilberries. They said they knew a way to effectively keep her away but…"

"The bastards were with the witch the entire time! Never trust a plant with a name as ridiculous as bilberry, Cici, bastards can't even find a decent name like blueberry. Fucking pretenders!" Abel ranted angrily. "They even broke my fucking pipe! What kind of sick

creature-"

"Abel," Anri interrupted warningly. She sighed and pulled off her tattered green ribbon, which she had wrapped around her wrist to staunch the bleeding from a nasty cut, and tied up her hair. "So they detained us until Nicnevin came…" the chrysanthemum sprite's eyes watered. "I'm so sorry Cici! We should have been here to protect you and yet..!"

Lovino wrapped an arm around the weeping woman, "No…no it's not your fault…"

"Yes it is, Cici. It's our fucking fault, we should have been here to protect you and your stupid pirate," Abel said bitterly, he was looking at the ground in shame. "To think, when you need us most is when we weren't even there."

"Well, I still don't think it's your fucking fault! I-It's mine…If I had just…fuck if I just let him go…just let Antonio go then none of this would have happened…" Lovino could feel the tears running down his face again. "Dammit, I just…I wish I had never found him. I-"

Anri tilted his head back up to look him in the eyes. "No, no that's a lie and you know it Cici."

Abel walked beside her and placed a hand on Lovino's shoulder, "Yeah. We're going to make it up to you, Cici. And we'll start by getting your bastard of a boyfriend back."

Lovino sniffled, before snapping at Abel half-heartedly, "He's not my boyfriend!"

"Sure he isn't."

* * *

_***Yeah I didn't misspell that. Bilberries are real and they're relatives of blueberries. But anyways. Bilberries = treachery, distrust etc**_

**For those who may or may not be wondering who the hell Nicnevin is. She's Scottish if Wiki and other sources with questionable credibility are right. I mean look at her name, gotta be from somewhere in that region. **All I gotta say is that shit is going to go down pretty soon. And about Nicnevin. They say she really was in exile or something along those lines. She's a monster in Christian faith and is considered a temptress that lures young men into her home to pay tithe to hell. Of course, this was all wikipedia's words so I'm not entirely sure of the accuracy of it all but I'm gonna use it anyway. That and Nicnevin was kinda of a mixed character and whether she was evil or not depended on the book/author. But other words, I know for a fact that there are many indiscrepancies in the context/history/area/whatever but please bear with me. I'mma tell you straight out it was never meant to be accurate in the first place, so try to ignore those little things for me unless it's a gaping plothole you need to point out. ****

**Also, reasons for making this arc, nothing brings people together like life-and-death situations. **

**And for all the other stuff before, it was just random scenes of those two getting closer and closer together. That and I like to write fluff between these two, I mean, who doesn't? **


	6. The Hunter from the East

**This chapter is short. I know it is. Whether that's a good thing or not is up to you as I had to mass cut and edit this since there were a lot of bits and pieces that didn't make sense or were just too damn confusing. And even then it might still be confusing. So if it is confusing, let me know and I'll try to clarify the confusing part better. But in other news, we hit 30 reviews fairly quickly! *enter confetti cannons* KABOOM I'm very, very happy to see that you guys like my story and your reviews invigorate me. I promise next chappie will be longer. I think.**

**Also, to my fellow Americans, HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY. I hope your day is filled with food and fireworks that are hopefully legal and loads of fun. Because fire and sparkly lights are the shit. **

**Disclaimer: I disclaim APH!**

* * *

**Chapter 5: The Hunter from the East**

"Feliciano." The aforementioned youth squeaked when he heard the voice.

"Y-yes! How are you Mr. Adnan?" the young priest-in-training stammered.

The Turkish man laughed, "Please, I insist that you call me Sadiq."

"N-no, I couldn't be so a-abrupt as to use the name of someone so d-distinguished…ve…" Feliciano bit his lip and tried his best to keep from running away screaming in the other direction. The past few days had been difficult for him as the bounty hunter tended to follow him around and – dare he say it? – flirt with him. Of course, Ludwig didn't take too kindly to that. He tried to confront the bounty hunter, but the Turkish man was slick.

He spoke smoothly and Nunzio seemed to always be present when Ludwig tried to confront him. The German couldn't risk blowing his cover as the struggling merchant and always had to back down. So the poor little Italian had to fend for himself. He took great pains to avoid the bounty hunter, but Sadiq always managed to find him somehow.

"Oh? But we're neighbors now, aren't we? It's impolite to be so rude as to talk to a neighbor as if he was a stranger, yes?"

"Y-yes, I suppose…" the timid brunet said, tugging nervously at his sleeves.

The masked man seemed content with this. "So it's settled then. Now," he gestured to the dining hall, "shall we get dinner together?"

"T-that's fine! I-I've eaten already with Ludwig and Father Nunzio already, so I'm not very hungry…sorry…" The poor thing tried to step away, but Sadiq would not be deterred.

"Is that so? Will you at least accompany me for a bit? I could use a bit of lively conversation," he said merrily, "I'm going to see the Father soon and I hope you can tell me more about the church and the man himself before I see him again."

Feliciano had no choice but to agree. "Ve…very well then."

The Turkish man smiled viciously, "Excellent. Now, come along." He wrapped an arm around the smaller male and practically dragged him into the dining hall. His smile grew even wider when he made eye contact with a certain German down the hall. Feliciano looked helplessly at Ludwig, who looked ready to march over there and punch the hunter in the face. With a slight shake of his head, the pirate backed down, but he followed them discreetly into the dining hall with a dark scowl marring his face.

But even with the comforting presence of Ludwig, poor Feliciano was so scared that he was barely able to speak coherently, much less walk without stumbling there.

Later that evening, Sadiq stood outside the door of the bishop's office. He knocked softly to let the occupant know he was there. "Come in," a voice called out, and the bounty hunter stepped smoothly into the room and shut the door behind him.

"You called for me, sir?" The masked man asked, before sitting down in one of the chairs and crossing his legs.

The bishop signed one of the papers on his desk before looking up and smiling benevolently at the man. "Why, yes, Sadiq. But first, how are you settling in? Are the accommodations to your liking?"

"Yes, thank you. Though I would prefer them a little closer to my young guide," the man said with false warmth.

"Oh I see. Young Feliciano has caught your eye has he? Well, it depends on the terms of your payment…" the bishop trailed off, but Sadiq knew what he was insinuating. It was tempting, but no. And the Turkish man waved his hand.

"No, no, I'm not that desperate for a bed partner, so I will have to decline your offer," Sadiq said, chuckling. "Let's get straight to the point now. What do you want?"

The bishop clasped his hands and looked down at him indulgently. "Well, I'm sure you've heard of the infamous witch of Sicily. The Vatican has been waiting for me to get rid of him. The church has never let a witch escape its grasp and it won't be any different for me."

The Turk whistled, "The witch of Sicily? Well, that's a high price you're placing there, my friend."

"Can't do it? I've heard you are experienced in witch hunting, or was that a lie?" the bishop challenged, Sadiq didn't miss the slight mocking tone the old man adopted.

"No, I'm fully capable of hunting down such a thing, but it'll come at a price," the Turkish man leaned forward, "Double the original amount."

The bishop frowned, "The gold we already gave you is not enough? I'll admit the amount of vagabonds running amok have decreased but you've hardly done anything meriting that much of a reward."

Sadiq took out his dagger, inspecting the tip and twirling it in between his fingers. "Well, this is the witch of Sicily we're talking about. The hunters that dare enter either get lost and never return or come out as broken men, unable to remember their pasts or their names." He looked up at the old man, "Not that I'd fail, but I'd like to be compensated for all the resources I'll be forced to use for your little expedition. It's not a high price for getting rid of that little stain on your reputation right?"

Nunzio clenched his hands, but grudgingly conceded, "Very well then. Get rid of that witch as soon as possible and you will have your gold."

The masked man smiled coldly, "Pleasure doing business with you then." He got up and made way to the door when the old man spoke again.

"And another thing, my dear Sadiq," Nunzio said, the saccharine voice sounded awful to the bounty hunter, "Keep an eye on Beilschmidt and look for any more of those pirates. Don't bring him in yet, not until you find the captain and the hideout for the rest of the crew, understand?"

"Of course, whatever you say, Father," he replied, voice dripping with sarcasm. It was a relief to finally be out of that room. The bishop wasn't the worst customer he'd dealt with, but he was a close second. The priest thought he was 'oh so powerful', and he was, but Sadiq was sure if he really wanted to, he could slice the man's throat anytime. And get away with it too.

Still irritated, he rested a hand on his sword's hilt and headed outside of the cathedral. Perhaps a night on the town would ease the tension from his shoulders. He smirked at the prospect and made his way down to the docks. It had been a while since he had drawn his blade.

...

* * *

...

NIcnevin. Queen of Elphame and self-proclaimed queen of fairies before her exile from Scotland or England or whatever place that wasn't Sicily. She'd once been human and accused as a witch, much like Lovino, but she escaped and survived. Even Lovino wasn't sure how long she had lived, but it had been a long time he was sure, despite her youthful appearance.

In a way, Lovino technically had Nicnevin to thank for holding out for so long in the forest without so much as a single hunter coming through to kill him. She was the source of the enchantment, the maze that kept hunters and all with the intent of harming him or Nicnevin out. Of course, to keep up this ruse she had to pay her fees. She'd been drawing on power from the dark realm. From places even Lovino knew as evil…

To keep her powers, her youth, this impenetrable forest, she gave souls and blood. At first, it was only lizards, then birds, eventually leading to the innocent passerby that was foolish enough to venture near the area. It was only once in a while that a human was actually sacrificed however. As far as Lovino knew, she hadn't sacrificed a single human since that fateful day he came running into the forest. She didn't feed the thing often. Like all things, too much of something would lead to tolerance. So Nicnevin slowly fed the thing whose powers she drew upon, only occasionally using the blood of the innocent to sate the beast as a rare reward. Sometimes she would use her own flesh and bone. Other times it was the newborns of assorted animals. Young creatures that Lovino was forced to offer in place of his own flesh.

As far as weaknesses go, Nicnevin's were few and far. Goddamn English. Couldn't even get rid of a witch properly. As much as it pained him to think that way considering he was a witch himself, Nicnevin was a completely different case! She was downright crazy; people like her were the reason why he had to hide!

Sure, she had shielded him for all these years. But after that day, the day when the wool was pulled from his eyes did he realize the truth. He wasn't entirely sure why she hadn't simply killed him. He had last seen her on the winter solstice with offerings he had no choice but to refuse. She always visited on auspicious days of the year, the full moon, new moon, the solstice, saints' days, you name it. Her appearance was a break of the routine and he couldn't help but blame himself. But at the moment, he had to put aside these self-deprecating thoughts to get to the plan at hand.

"So explain to me how the hell you guys can help if I gotta lug around your plants through the whole damn forest?" Lovino asked, sitting in his chair after finally regaining some of his composure.

They gave each other the look. The look that pretty much mean that he was not going to like what he'd hear. Anri said hesitantly, "Well, Cici, you see…"

"We'll have to use blood seals," Abel interrupted, and raised a hand so the Italian wouldn't argue, "We don't have much of a choice here Cici. It's either this, or you drag us all the way through the woods. And don't say you'll go by yourself, you're in no shape to take her on and you know it."

He snapped his mouth shut before scowling and turning away, "I don't want to use you like how she uses them."

Anri patted the back of his hand gently, "We don't like it either Cici, but please bear with us. This is the only way we can work together to save your precious Antonio!"

The herbalist blushed, "He is not my precious anything! H-he's just a sort of f-friend!" he denied. The two shared another skeptical look. Goddammit. He meant it! It was 100% true!

The brunette brushed a stray hair from his face and smiled consolingly at him, "We want to protect you Cici, so I'm sorry it makes you uncomfortable but it has to be done. We're not going to do this all the time either, so we won't get hurt. That's what you're worried about right?"

Lovino turned even more red and looked at his hands sheepishly, "I-I-I just don't want to have to deal with a couple of brain dead idiots when we're done and I uh-" She smiled widely at him and ruffled his hair affectionately. For once, he didn't push her away.

"How touching, now let's get back to the plan now. Or are you too busy crying in the corner?" Abel said sarcastically, earning him a hard pinch on the ear from the chrysanthemum sprite. Rubbing his sore ear, he rolled out a scroll with the schematics of an elaborate looking cathedral. He stated the obvious first, "This is a map of her castle," he said in his usual drawl, "Here and here are the only entryways by foot. There are windows practically everywhere but there's only one that won't trip an alarm if we get the timing right."

Anri butt in, and pointed to the easternmost side of the layout, "On the highest floor, in her bedroom. According to our sources, the queen rarely places any form of guard there. If there is anything, it's only blinds. They say she hates the sound of fae buzzing around her room in the morning and places minimal guards around the area."

Lovino stood up to stare at the sketch. "What's the catch?"

Abel's eye twitched, "Bilberries everywhere. And they've been reinforced with magic, so they're difficult to cut by normal means. But once they're out of the way or if we can sneak past them somehow, it'll be a cinch to get through the window and into the castle itself."

Despite his reassurances, Lovino felt his heart drop. "Che, and how the hell do we get past these bilberries again? We can't just ignore them can we?"

The chrysanthemum patted him consolingly on the shoulder, "That's where you come in Cici."

"What?"

The blonde pulled out a pipe, an old, secondary wooden pipe that he seldom used except for emergencies where he couldn't find his primary one. "We went to Lukas for help and he gave us some of this." He held up a small jar that held a small broken branch. It looked pretty normal from afar. Then Lovino squinted his eyes and realized that the wood was covered in white, fur-like spots and that the tips where the wood was broken off were growing black.

"Stem blight…for blueberries?" The herbalist looked up at the sprite who nodded in response.

"Yeah, they found it and broke it off. Lukas was supposed to destroy it but gave it to us. Thought it'd be useful, better thank him later Cici."

"What the fuck? He should have just destroyed it then! If we're not careful, this thing could spread everywhere-"

"Already ahead of you, Cici. We've got Lukas' warding stones right here," he patted his pockets to make sure Lovino would see, "Nothing to worry about."

Anri then continued, "We get in, get out. Antonio should be held captive in either the confessional booth or the main altar. So we'll split into teams-"

"Whoa, whoa, wait a second, what teams?" Lovino glanced between the two sprites, "As far as I know, there's just the three of us unless…" He gripped his head and groaned, "You don't mean them, do you?"

The brunette sighed. "We need more than just us Cici. Going against the queen means we have to have a set team ready. They're loyal to us, you know that," she coughed, "Michelle and Govert are a little…odd but they're good flowers!"

Lovino gave a long-suffering sigh, "Fine! But I hope you know what you're doing because as far as I know, that damn ivy isn't the most reliable type!"

Abel slapped him on the side of the head, "Be nice, Cici. They both may be annoying little saplings but they're annoying little saplings that are choosing to help us get your boyfriend back. Be nice."

"He's not my fucking boyfriend!" But the herbalist grudgingly conceded the former point and stopped his rant. He did, however, ask who else was coming.

"Well…we did ask uh…Feliks?" the female sprite said nervously, readying herself for the impending explosion. Abel plugged his ears.

"WHAT?" The Italian screeched, "That fucking orchid? You gotta be kidding me!"

"Oi, oi, calm down Cici," the aconite said, "He's stronger than you think. If anything, he's as stubborn as a bad weed when it comes down to it. Pretty sure he was going to help you no matter what you said or what we said if you wanna talk about that."

"Ugh, that's great," Lovino threw himself back into his chair, "Can't wait to get started. Are we going to move out soon, or do we have to wait for those lazy-ass flowers to get their butts into gear?"

The sprites shared a look. Abel stared at him, "Do you really think you're ready at all to face her? You look like shit and more importantly, we feel like shit."

The chrysanthemum sprite punched her brother's arm roughly, "What we're trying to say Cici, is that we're all exhausted." The angry Italian opened his mouth to say something but the woman continued, "You may think you're fine, but it's just the adrenaline talking. None of us are in the right shape or mind to go after the queen now, let's gather our strength and we'll get there tomorrow okay?"

"But-"

"No buts, Cici. I may look and feel like shit but that doesn't mean I can't strap you to the bed if need be," and the blonde man, who then blew a smoke ring in his face.

This time, Lovino kept his mouth shut and turned away, realizing guiltily how much they were sticking their necks out for him. The two of them were covered in bandages and salves. They healed faster than humans and would most definitely recover with a good night's rest, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt like a bitch when they were injured like that. "Fine, just let me clean your plants up since you guys look like-"

"Shit?" Abel offered.

Anri looked appalled, as if she just realized that her brother had been cursing, "Language!"

"I've been talking like this the entire time and you've never made a fuss!"

"That's different, dumbass!"

"See, you just cursed!"

"Don't talk back to me that way, young man!" Anri grabbed his ear and yanked it. Abel screeched appropriately for the situation.

The Italian rolled his eyes as the usual antics ensued between the two siblings. Be it peacetime or the end of the world, these two would never change. If there wasn't the impending doom of the upcoming rescue attempt and the fact that a certain, infuriatingly charming and idiotic pirate wasn't missing, he would have assumed it was another day like usual. Strangely enough, he didn't feel inclined to go back to those halcyon days. Not without Antonio.

In the end, they stayed up into the late hours of the night, planning and arguing, throwing around old map sketches and old potions. They eventually went outside where Anri and Abel rested in their plants while Lovino slept beside them, held in a warm embrace of roots and leaves.

...

* * *

...

"Do you like, think I should poke him with a stick to get him to like, wake up?" an annoyingly familiar voice said above him.

"What? But he's a witch! I don't think he's gonna flinch over something so stupid. You should do something bigger!" said a brash voice that was somehow feminine.

"Haha, good point! Let's get one with a really, really big bug on it and-" Govert never got to finish his sentence as Lovino had punched him square in the jaw. The Italian sat up straight and cracked his neck while ignoring the pained whines of a certain, idiotic ivy sprite.

Without even looking at Govert and Feliks, he turned to the fidgeting girl before him, "Hey, do you know where the other two are?"

"Inside! You know, a friendly 'hello' would be nice-"

"Yeah, thanks," the herbalist stalked into the cottage, again, ignoring the indignant cries of the other sprites. He felt as if his stomach was doing flip flops and that his heart was ready to jump out of his chest. Jesus, they hadn't even gone through with the plan yet and he was already so damn nervous he could've puked. But like hell was he going to leave Antonio there with Nicnevin so he could be monster chow. A traitorous voice inside said he would probably joining the pirate for dinner. He quashed the words ruthlessly.

Antonio…he never thought he'd go to such lengths for anyone besides his own family. So was the pirate now family? It certainly didn't feel that way to him. He blushed when he thought about the hugs, and the gentle kiss to the forehead. Definitely not family. Fuck him this was a train wreck waiting to happen.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he nearly fell over when Anri shoved a plate full of waffles in his face. "W-wha…?"

"Breakfast! You've got to keep your strength up!" the cheerful woman said brightly. "Eat up, eat up! Today is the big day and we've got to get going soon!"

Abel rolled his eyes and took a few waffles from the flustered herbalist's plate. "If you stuff him like that, he's gonna puke," he glanced at Lovino, "In fact, he already looks like he's gonna puke, no food needed." The Italian would have said something to argue that if he wasn't worried about the aconite sprite being right.

The smoker threw the extra waffles outside. A distinct cheer of joy could be heard outside as the three idiots were probably sharing the "raining waffles".

He picked gingerly at the breakfast and simply decided to save it for later. He threw the food in a paper bag into his own knapsack. Hey, you never know why you might get hungry during a trip to hell on Earth. Also in his pack was the jar of stem blight, Antonio's flintlock pistol (he didn't really know how to use it but how hard could pulling a trigger be?), a canteen, and various salves and ointments he thought would be necessary. He kept the dagger he got from Lukas strapped to his belt. He still had no fucking idea how to open it. He tried showing it to Abel and Anri, but they were just as stumped.

Still…maybe he could use it later. But as a backup for now, he placed a paring knife in his boot. He flexed his left hand, it still burned a little but that would fade sooner or later anyways so he didn't pay any mind to it. Last night, the only solution they had was a blood seal. It was similar to the contract Nicnevin made with all her ugly, monster minions. He learned how to do it when the witch had dropped by and taught an unwilling Lovino how to do it. He had thought back then that she was trying to convert him so he could become another pawn to use but he now, he wasn't so sure.

Anyways, the blood seal required a witch, a knife, a bunch of hocus pocus incantations and a demon, or some sort of mystical creature, to bind. He was surprised he remembered it because a single word out of place would have ruined everything. To simplify the spell, it was him using his blood to bind all the flower sprites to his will. He had to…engrave a circle in his hand using the incantation and then brand each participant with the mark. To say it was unpleasant was an understatement. Truth be told, it didn't really hurt when the pentagram appeared on his hand, but he'd cringed when he watched the sprites all struggle to keep a straight face when they were branded. Despite how much they tried to hide in the pain, he could still see them trembling and hear the softest sighs of pain. Blood seals were meant for complete control, but if he gave a vague command these guys had a lot more freedom. It left a bad taste in his mouth, using blood. Blood was always…always a part of those shadier deals, the dark places that no one, man or witch, should see. Granted, it wasn't much in this case but it still gave him shudders.

Going outside, he found the three idiots, Michelle, Govert, and Feliks all lined up and saluting Abel and Anri.

The taller sibling talked in a clear voice, "Our main objective here is to rescue the pirate. Don't get sidetracked or even think of confronting the queen. The time limit is that we have to get the stupid pirate out tomorrow by dawn or else he'll be monster chow and we'll all be dead. We'll split into two teams. Each team will have a hand mirror to communicate with each other. We only have these two so you better not fucking lose it." At this Abel gave Lovino a look. The herbalist flipped the bird and walked out to stand beside Anri. He already knew how they would be split but that didn't mean he liked it.

"Michelle, Govert, you two are coming with me," Abel then pointed at Feliks, "You, you're going with Cici and Anri."

"I'm like, totally glad I'm with you girl!" the flamboyant blonde said when he walked over to Anri's side. "I haven't met like a proper lady to talk to in days. And like, no offense to Michelle, but she wouldn't get girl talk even if it like, hit her in the face."

Michelle subsequently threw a rock at him. "You calling me a boy or something?" the girl fumed, her twin pigtails flaring around her. Govert grabbed her arms to hold her back.

"I'm sure Feliks is just kidding!" he said, still smiling, and turned to the aconite, "So what's next?"

Anri cleared her throat and spoke, "Well, your team is going to be checking out the confessional booth for Antonio. My team is going to be heading towards the altar and look for him. Um, everyone, please follow the routes we gave you on the maps."

Feliks spoke up, raising his hand, "Um well, what if we like accidentally bump into the fake queen?"

Abel answered this time, "You run like hell. Jump to your host plant and then lie low. The queen can't tell all of you guys apart. There's way too many of you anyway." Feliks nodded in acknowledgement. "But remember just one last thing, don't let anyone see you! Dolls are scouts, kill them on sight. Trolls are foot soldiers, so you hide and shut up. Gargoyles are generals and bad news, you jump out the fucking window and run for the hills! We have until exactly midnight tonight to get the bastard outta there, so let's get moving. Time is money, and if we don't move our asses we'll be dead broke."

The aconite sprite turned to the young brunet expectantly, "Let's get this over with Cici."

He only grimaced in response, as he pulled off the bandage to brand the other three. Idiots they may be, it wasn't nice seeing their expressions twist at the pain. When he was done, he tried to look them all in the eye without looking away in shame, "I command you to find Antonio Carriedo for me. You will go with us to Nicnevin's castle and follow the orders of the aconite sprite, Abel."

A reddish glow enveloped all of the sprites and quickly died down. Michelle waved her arm, "Hoo, that really burns don't it?"

"Like, it's 'doesn't' not 'don't'. Like, not man is gonna like you if you don't talk all lady like and stuff," Feliks said with distaste.

"Why you-"

"Well what are we waiting for? Lead the way, Cici!" Govert grabbed his arm and shoved him toward the forest, "Let's move before those two kill each other yeah?"

"You didn't need to shove me bastard!" he barked but quieted down when he looked into the forest ahead. Beyond his safe little circle, his quaint cottage, was the true cursed forest. Before, he had never been afraid to venture outside. Now, it seemed as if he was twelve again and was stumbling around in the dark, screaming and crying in pain. He was the only one who truly remembered the way to Nicnevin's castle as he had been there twice before. The first time was because he was injured and the witch had taken him under her wing. That was when she built the cottage for him and he felt oddly guilty that he was doing this to her. The second time was when she wanted him to bring her the lamb he had been taking care of. The guilt he felt was washed away.

There was no going back. The moment he stepped through and led their trek through the woods, he knew that it would be impossible to restore the peace he once had. But he felt like he owed it to the pirate, whose presence and companionship made it feel like he was the one being saved and not the other way around. After this, he was sure Antonio would hate him, shun him like all the others. But it didn't change the fact that Lovino sort of felt some semblance of care for the dumbass. He going to find that idiot whether he wanted him to or not.

...

* * *

...

Antonio woke up in a room that reminded him strongly of the confessional booths he once entered when he was young and religious. He could smell incense from the other side, where the priest was supposed to be behind the shade. He flexed his fingers, finding himself tied to the seat with what seemed to be the roots of black roses.

"Awake I see," a voice said beyond the shade.

"Ah, well, it's hard to stay asleep when you've taken me here like this, do you always treat guests so impolitely?" Antonio said in his usual lilt, although this time it was accompanied by a hard edge.

She laughed, "Now there's no need to be crass, a guest has a duty to be polite to his hostess after all. Now tell me, when did you come upon my precious little boy?" When Antonio stayed silent, she went on. "Oh? Not going to tell me? Just as well, I suppose it doesn't matter. You see, for a while I was going sparse on good food for old Andras. To think, that Lovino would provide such a tasty morsel such as yourself!" She let out another laugh, this one more sinister than before, "For a while, I was worried that I'd have to sacrifice the boy instead, but then you came along. Isn't that wonderful?"

The pirate gritted his teeth. "Oh? Well what shall you do with him now that I've come along?" he asked as calmly as he possibly could.

"Interested? I suppose I'll let him live for now. He's such a pretty boy, I wonder what else he could be used for…perhaps take more souls for me? I've always wanted a child, a protégé of my own. Ah, or shall I take that face for myself? Decisions, decisions, my little witch deserves the best end after all," her voice sounded fond, but the fondness reminded him strongly of a miser hoarding his gold, or a spider treasuring its food.

He balled his hands into fists, his voice now becoming dangerously low, "I'm afraid I can't let you do that to him. Touch him and I'm afraid you'll have to face the consequences."

Another shrill laugh resounded within the booth, "I'll face the consequences? What a nonsensical statement, and I thought you were smart. Nonetheless, you're an interesting one. Not screaming or begging for your life. Only asking about the welfare of the witch-child who landed you here in the first place. You're such a silly boy aren't you?" He heard rustling on the other side and a door creaked open. "Unfortunately, I have other things to attend to so I'll have to finish this conversation another time, An-ton-i-o~" she said, dragging out his name in a mocking tone.

And she was gone, her footsteps becoming farther and farther away until he was left in utter silence. He struggled silently against the bonds that tied him to the chair but it was futile. He was stuck here while she could be doing God knows what to Lovino. He hoped the little brunet was okay. A witch huh? He hadn't seen that one coming, but the more he thought about why the herbalist refused to leave made more and more sense. The Witch of Sicily had become infamous due to the sheer impossibility of ever reaching him. He was the only witch that had ever escaped the clutches of the Vatican, or more like the only witch that escaped in such a dramatic fashion. And of all things, he managed to stumble upon one of the most wanted people of the church. Surely a work of fate.

Destroying the cage and ignoring all inhibitors, killing two guards and then escaping where no one had been able to venture. Definitely not the most discreet way of escape, but he supposed Lovino didn't have much of a choice at the time. To tell the truth, the actual manner of the escape had been twisted over the years, but he supposed all those rumors had a grain of truth.

It was then that the earlier lies began to fall into place. The strange disappearances of his 'friends', the uncanny ability with plants, the fear and hate that seemed to emanate from his person when mentioning the church. And then, what angered him most, the slight flinch Antonio saw whenever Lovino or anyone else in the room lit a flame. It was so slight that he wondered if even Lovino had noticed it, but the slightest hesitation was there. It was all so obvious now that Antonio wanted to bang his head into the wall. And then when he was done, he would go strangle whoever dared do that to his Lovi.

In all honesty, he couldn't care less about whether the feisty Italian was a witch or not. All he cared about was whether he would be able to make it back and find Lovino safe and sound. He wondered what the woman had meant by sacrifice but decided he didn't want to know. In fact, he would like nothing more than to stab the bitch in the heart, but first he needed to get out of here.

He tried to push himself onto his feet, but it seemed the vines seemed connected to the floor and were unyielding. Except for one leg, the one his left ankle was tied to had vines that weren't pulled so tightly to the floor. He jerked the chair roughly until that leg broke free.

He smirked to himself when his left leg was more or less free. He leaned over, slowly and carefully pulling the small hunting knife he kept in his boot. When he finally got a good grip on it, he slowly and carefully began cutting the ropes tying him down. Before long, he would be breaking out and be back to his Lovino in no time. But first, he needed show this sorceress why he was the most feared pirate across the seven seas.

...

* * *

...

Sadiq touted his bag over his shoulder. "I expect to be paid in full when I return Father," he said, as he passed the old man.

The priest nodded, "But of course, it will be taken care of. Good luck out there," the man finished with false concern. "Say goodbye to this brave man my children, and pray for him as he goes out to cleanse our great city of evil!"

There was a general cheer of agreement and the hunter chuckled to himself. Hopeless lambs, every one of them. He passed by nervous and adoring faces alike. There was also hatred there too, and disdain for someone so dusty and well, old, and so unlike the general image that hunters should be gallant heroes like in the stories. He ignored all of them with practiced ease. He wasn't lying when he said he had experience, he had hunted numerous creatures beyond witches and had so far come out victorious. The only thing that really pissed him off about this job was that one man…Heracles. If he slipped up, which was unlikely at best, then they would probably hire the bastard of a Greek.

The aura around him darkened slightly at the thought of his infuriating rival, but it eased immediately upon remembering his quest. Surely, this hunt would shoot his name through the roof and he would finally win. The thought brought a confident smirk to his face and passing by the beautiful boy that was Nunzio's favorite made that grin grow. He stopped in front of the trembling boy. He was so nervous and small, like a small animal. It was even more amusing when he found that the boy was friendly to the pretend merchant, that Beilschmidt, and laughed aloud whenever the foolish pirate tried to come to the little Italian's rescue.

It was the most amusing thing he had ever seen. Like a tiny pup trying to bark away larger prey. "I hope to see you first when I return, little one," Sadiq said, brushing the boy's face with false warmth. "Will you wish me luck, Feliciano?"

He chuckled in amusement when the boy flinched and a fragile voice replied shakily, "U-uh, yes….be careful…"

He ruffled the boy's hair affectionately and turned away, ignoring the furious glare coming from the German standing beside the little clergyman. Without another word, he left that holy place. He took his time getting out of town and dropped by the seedy alleyways at the docks to purchase some…questionable items. After procuring a sturdy horse, he made his way to the forest and arrived sometime late into the evening.

He fingered his sword and licked his lips. He hadn't had such a high profile hunt in a while, and he could hardly contain his excitement. He stood at the front of the forest, taking in the angry growls and forbidding aura that came from the forest. He placed a hand into the fog, allowing it to caress his hand and attempt to drag him in. He chuckled and smirked darkly. Let the witch hunt begin.

**...**

* * *

_**A/N: **_**Goddamn those English. *shakes fist at sky* Jk, but you know that right? Again, I'm sorry I have to cut it short, but it didn't feel right to go any longer because it would start to get a little overwhelming if I shoved everything in this chapter. Expect more exciting things next chappie, things are heating up! Again, thanks for reviewing. You guys are love. You guys are life. I heart every single one of you who hath bothered to follow this humble story and support it with thy dying will. Or something like that. I do hope you'll be sticking around. Also if you didn't know: **

**Heracles Karpusi = Greece**


	7. The Witch's House

**I'm dragging this out longer than I should. So I'm going to try to wrap this up soon. Hope you guys don't mind the pace right now, because it's a little slow. It's gonna be all like WOOSH later. But at least there's a bit of action happening. Yeah? *gets hit by rocks* Oh well. Thanks to those who reviewed and are sticking to the story still! I'm so happy and proud that I've actually managed to get so far with this. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own APH **

* * *

**Chapter 6: The Witch's House **

"Oh god, this is like, totally ruining my clothes!"

"Oh shut up already! Don't be such a wuss puss, you're a flower aren't you?"

"I'm like, a totally classy flower! Not like the backwater plants that sit in the back like you!"

"Why you…"

Lovino rolled his eyes at the argument between the two. Michelle had been arguing with Feliks the entire time about the journey. Every time the annoying blonde would complain about something dirtying his clothes, the young rosemary sprite would nag about how he had it easy and that in the area farther downstream, she was completely used to it. Govert would just laugh along. God, he thought Anri and Abel could be a lot to handle but these three were the worst! Honestly, didn't they know the value of just _shutting up_?

He passed a nasty glare over his shoulder when he could hear the orchid sprite's loud sighs. "Will you just shut the fuck up already? We're almost there, so just _be quiet_!" Michelle seemed ready to laugh at the annoying blonde's face but Lovino silenced her with another death glare. Govert still seemed to find this highly amusing but was wise enough not to make another sound or else he would get punched again.

For the past few hours, it seemed the forest was intent on keeping them from getting to Nicnevin. Trees were growing over the path and it was difficult where they were going at times. That and it seemed as if the forest was being a bitch and decided to block out a lot of the light. They'd ended up using some of their lanterns' fuel to make their way through and it pissed Lovino to no end whenever they ended up backtracking. So much time lost when they could be finding the pirate and then getting the hell out of there.

It was late afternoon when they finally caught a glimpse at the damned place. They were all walking, Lovino being pissed off at everyone as usual while everyone blabbered/argued when the Italian had to stop the procession. He was standing at the edge of a cliff overlooking a small valley that housed an ancient looking cathedral at its center.

"Finally! Now let's- What the hell are you doing?!" The young herbalist turned around to see all of them surrounding a bush and staring at it intently.

Abel stood up and grabbed Lovino by the shoulders, whirling him around to stare back at the rotting cathedral. "There's nothing to see here, let's get going!" he barked at the others. The herbalist shoved the blonde sprite's hands off of him.

"The fuck do you mean? What's over there?" This time Anri stopped him.

"Um, well, I don't think you want to come over there Cici! There's uh…there's" she stopped to think, "There's poison ivy over there!" she exclaimed.

Govert looked affronted, "Ivy is not poisonous! Who do you think I am?"

Michelle patted him gently on the back, or more like whacked him hard with the back of her hand, "Oh it's okay! You look just fine! I'm sure you're perfectly friendly and harmless!"

Feliks then had to add, "But, like, isn't there poison ivy that grow on the ground and stuff?"

"But-But, they're not poisonous, just misunderstood!" Govert wailed, his normally cheery face drooping in exaggerated sadness.

There was a cough, and a new voice spoke up, "I do believe an introduction is in order." Michelle and Govert backed away from the voice while Anri and Abel stood in front of the young brunet in a protective stance. He couldn't help but feel a bit touched by the gesture. N-not like he couldn't completely take care of himself if he wanted to though!

Regaining their composure, the three other idiots joined the protective wall around him. He pushed past Abel and Anri, despite their growls and warnings. "Who the hell are you?!" he growled, trying to get the other two sprites from pulling him back behind them. He didn't need a shield every time they went out. He didn't need the idiots getting hurt on his behalf.

The person stepped forward and Lovino could finally see him. Or it. Or whatever the hell it was, because it wasn't human. It was tall, as tall as Abel. It had the head of a horse with bright red eyes and short protruding horns. The torso and arms were that of well-bodied man and the bottom cut off into a pair of horse legs. He was wearing an expensive looking coat and vest, complete with gloves and everything. Like a freaking butler he saw once when passing by the village head's home.

It blinked and stared intensely at him, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lovino Vargas."

"Why the fuck do you know my name? Who are you?!" he yelled back, his voice surprisingly level. I mean, if he ever stumbled in speech, it was because he was angry and not s-scared of the stupid, freaky looking thing standing in front of him.

It cocked its head to one side, as if trying to get a better look at him. Abel growled and stood in its way. "I am Orobas, unfortunate oracle and prisoner of the exiled witch known otherwise as the malignant Queen of Elphame, Nicnevin," he said in a monotone voice, and he extended a gloved hand.

"What?! You're-" Lovino tensed and fell backwards when a heavy gust of wind blew in front of him. He felt as if the world shifted, like a gear had been pushed out of place. When he got up, he found the rest of the sprites around him frozen into position. The world was in pause, the leaves had stopped falling, the birds stopped flying, the insects stopped moving. The whole world was faded of color, like he was standing at the forefront of some old, dull background.

What the fuck was happening? He walked out of the protective circle the sprites formed around him and waved a hand in front of Anri, then the others. "Time has stopped for us. They can't hear our conversation here." Lovino screamed when he saw the horse demon was standing right behind him. He nearly fell over, and skittered backwards. Hey, you would back up too if a fucking horse headed monster decided to stand right behind you, breathing down your neck!

"W-what the fuck do you want from me?" He cursed himself at the sound of his voice. It sounded so…feeble. He's faced worse than this! He straightened himself up and tried to look the creature in the eye.

It seemed amused. "Look at yourself. So young. So fragile. A bird would fare better in the danger you face. If you were to enter her lair as you are now you would surely die."

"Get to the fucking point, bastard!" Lovino snapped. It probably wasn't the smartest idea to start yelling at the monster, but he didn't fucking care. He had other places to be!

It didn't seem offended at all by his rudeness. In fact, it seemed more amused than anything, "You are poorly equipped for the job, both in mind and body. Tainted and weakened she may be, but her foresight is an ability not so easily forgotten. She has walked among mankind for centuries and has seen through the hardest of hearts and heard the deepest of desires. Your intent is clear and your soul is true, your actions are an open book with which she may find amusement for its predictability."

"And what do you propose I do? What the hell can I do except this?" he said, narrowing his eyes. He already knew where this was going.

"I invite you to my fold. I tire of that wretched woman. She is a tumor that feeds off the vigor of the living to continue to exist. Those unable to protect themselves, those too weak to deny her will are quickly extinguished. A demon such as myself is no exception, especially as she is the unholy conjurer and therefore, master of this realm. It is only befitting that I offer you power that I cannot use myself against her. Remove her and all shall be well. Both goals fulfilled and your life fully intact."

"Che, how do I know you're not in cahoots with Nicnevin. For all I know, you could be the one leading me into a trap sending me off to feed her instead!" He reached into his pack, trying to feel around for the pistol he had brought along with him. C'mon…c'mon…aha there it-

"Murder is not my intention. Bloodshed is distasteful, the only achievement being dirty clothes and soiled souls. But if I truly wanted you dead I would have simply notified the mistress and there would be none left the wiser of your untimely death. But as I do not wish to be caught consorting with you and I do not want you to die quite yet I offer you my services. A nice offer is it not? If she is gone, all our goals will be realized." If its voice wasn't so monotone, Lovino would have said that it sounded a little smug. Bastard.

But it had a point. "And what happens to you?"

It made an odd snorting sound, "I roam free, and continue my studies. Humans are fascinating creatures, unpredictable yet predictable, immortal yet mortal, innocent yet polluted. A paradox one cannot help but ponder. I swear on my honor as the oracle and on the blood of my lifeless heart that I shall not harm a soul while I exist." He couldn't tell if he was lying or not. And that's what scared him most. Everything, everything the stupid horse said was more or less true. And it made him feel even worse that he was practically walking into a death trap with some of the people…the people he cared for most into it. But…

"You sure love to hear yourself talk." He pulled out his gun and pointed it at the horse's head, "No deal. Now…get the fuck out of here before I blow your brains out." He had to hold the pistol with both hands to keep from shaking. He'd never handled a gun before okay?!

"You continue to refuse? Are you so lost that you cannot think? No mere human could possibly survive, you know this do you not?" the horse asked, sounding genuinely confused as to why he would turn the offer down.

Lovino gulped, "Because…" The demon leaned forward to hear him. "Because…I don't need your help! I've heard your fucking statistics before, lots of times! You don't think I don't know that everything you said is true?" He took a shaky breath before continuing, "Of course I know! Of course it seems everything's hopeless the way you say it like that!...But…"

The demon tilted its head in confusion, "But?"

"We're persistent motherfuckers and no matter how many times you try to tell us wrong…we'll just keep going full steam ahead," he chuckled ironically to himself, "And I think you're forgetting who your fucking with. I'm a fucking witch and I won't hesitate to beat your ass and Nicnevin's when I have to. Besides, even if I did make a deal with you, all those idiots would find out and probably tie me to a tree and go on without me," he finished, clicking back the safety. His hands were no longer shaking. In a surprisingly steady voice, "I don't need your help. We can figure this out on our own."

The horse made a strange growling sound at the back of its throat. It took a moment for Lovino to realize that it was laughing. "Very well. Perhaps I have underestimated you little one. I will watch you play in this game, little fool. Shall a miracle occur? I wonder…" It said, the last part more to himself and turned its back to him. With a snap of its fingers, everything shattered. The color of the world was no longer muted and everything was set back into motion. The only thing missing was a certain horse demon. Damn it.

"You better fucking bet on it!" he yelled to the sky. He was pretty sure the demon could hear him. He ran a nervous hand through his hair. This was probably, most likely, going to bite him back in the butt. But no way was he going to make a deal with a demon. He'd made some…admittedly…a couple of stupid mistakes, but he was smart enough to know to avoid these types of shady deals.

And of course, now that the weird time stop thing was over, that meant the noisy dumbasses were up and back in action too, each of them crying out his name.

"Lovino!"

"Cici!"

"Bubby!"

"Where'd the last one come from?!" Lovino screeched, as all five of them jumped him and made one messy dog pile.

After letting him breathe, Anri patted him down. And by patting down, he meant just shy of molesting him because she _and _Michelle were poking him just about _everywhere_. Anri asked him worriedly, "Are you hurt? Did he do anything? You're fine right?"

The herbalist pushed them away, "Yes, I'm fine! He didn't do anything but talk. I'm fine!" They weren't really convinced when they noticed he was holding Antonio's pistol.

Abel was cracking his knuckles and scowling at the scenery, "Where did that fucker go?"

Feliks flipped his hair, and looked around. "I think that horse guy like, left a while ago," he then began to pout, "And that magic he used like, totally messed up my hair!" He pulled at a few strands, "Look, like they're all totally magically saturated and stuff!"

Govert, ignoring all of them, was picking at the ground, "Strange…he left a trail…" he said distractedly and picked up a handful of dirt and dropping it in one of those empty vials he always had in his pockets.

The young brunet groaned, "Ugh, we don't have time for this! Let's just get Antonio already and then get out of here. I don't wanna be around if that horse freak is here." He turned on his heel and began walking down without looking back to see if they followed.

Antonio was surprised the security was so lax. He would have assumed that he would be more guarded, but when he broke out of the confessional booth he found the adjoining room to be empty.

...

* * *

...

She was either very, very overconfident in her abilities to keep him, or she knew he wouldn't be able to get out. As much as he was hoping for the former, the sorceress probably knew what she was doing. Her laughter was still ringing in his ears and he had to shake his head to get the wretched noise out, replacing it with a certain Italian's angry, yet concerned voice.

"_You dumbass, what took you so fucking long?_" It was something Antonio thought the young herbalist would say when he returned. And then the little brunet would hug him anyway, calling him a bastard or a jerk while doing so. And for the sake of that reunion, he searched harder for any form of escape. He had tried prying open the windows and smashing them with the nearby candelabras, but it was as if they were mere decorations on the stone walls. He tried to pry open the doors, tried to break them down, but they were as unmovable as the windows.

He sighed, "Mierde…" Now how was he going to get back to his cute little tomato? It was at that moment, a flash of light and there appeared the sorceress herself. She was wearing a flowing blue dress, similar to the green one she had worn the day before. Of course, the smug grin was still there. Antonio scowled.

"I see you've actually managed to pull yourself out!" she said with fake surprise and clapped her hands. "Such a good job!"

He smiled, not bothering to hide the malice in it, "Well, of course! With such sloppy handiwork, it would have been easy enough for even a newborn to get out of that chair!"

The smug smile faltered a bit, a frown nearly making its way out before disappearing again. "How do you like your room? Cozy isn't it?" True, the cathedral would have been nice. Wide windows with stained glass and the high ceilings and arches with elaborate sculptures, it would have been beautiful if not for the actual content of the décor. Beautiful faces, screaming in terror, and pentagrams stood where crosses should be. The stained glass showed the steps of a sacrificial ceremony, the last step pictured at the largest window behind the altar held a picture of a bloody corpse.

He simply smiled. Donning the countenance that led to some unfortunate fools to dub him as imbalanced, he replied, "I could ask for no better lodgings. I can't wait for the moment when I shall rip the still-beating heart from your chest and offer it to your very own altar."

Before he knew it, she was right in front of him, a hand splayed on his chest, pushing him back and keeping him in place, and a lopsided smile similar to his own, "How fascinating, you're still so deluded as to believe that you'll be able to escape? To be able to kill me?" She laughed and stepped back, "A pity you're delusions seem to have infected my young witch, because he seems to be coming for you."

It took all of his willpower not to drop the mask he was wearing. "Oh? What could you possibly be talking about?" But he put his hands behind his back, squeezing the handle of his knife.

He wanted to rip the woman's smile off her face. Preferably by slicing it off as slowly and as painfully as possible…He idly noted that his thoughts were starting to become violent again. But he found that he no longer felt the need to hold back, now that Lovino was no longer present.

"Perhaps I'll let him 'save' you. He's never failed to entertain me. I knew I made the right decision when I took him in," she said, talking about the herbalist as if he were some toy she found interesting again.

"And you're going to regret it," Antonio said, with false cheer, "Don't underestimate Lovino. He'll get you now that you've turned your back to him."

She turned around, he could practically hear the smugness in her voice, "I doubt that it will be _my _back he'll be stabbing~! You'd better prepare yourself!" She then disappeared in another flash of light, forcing the pirate to turn his head away. When she was gone, he found himself walking to the window, pressing himself against it in an attempt to see a familiar brunet come walking out of the forest.

Guilt. Anger. Frustration. He couldn't believe that Lovino would…Okay, actually he could. The innocent Italian was too kind, even when he said he wasn't. The herbalist shouldn't have to go out of his way to save him. As touched as he was by the gesture, he wasn't about to sit idle and let his dearest do all the work while he sat by like some damsel in distress. With new resolve he set about, looking for a weak point, a place he could exploit.

That place turned out to be the ceiling. Looking up at the highest point of the vaulted ceiling, there was a chandelier. Normally, a cathedral's main altar would use natural light from the windows and candles on the ground floor would provide then necessary illumination. In a room such as this, adding a highly decorated chandelier was redundant.

One thing led to another, and he found himself climbing the arches, climbing up and up until he reached the chandelier. He pulled on it a couple of times, checking to see if it was safe. Then he cautiously put one foot on it, then the other. He whistled, "This is the probably the best chandelier I've ever seen!" he exclaimed to no one in particular. "But to think she would go out of her way to put me down here…" He smiled to himself, so she really must think he was threat if she would go so far to imprison him here. Putting the knife handle in his mouth, he climbed the chandelier's chain and made it the very top.

At the top, he felt a draft and the area overhead felt weaker, breakable. Jackpot.

...

* * *

...

Meanwhile, Lovino was hiding in the bushes, trying to be inconspicuous while there were five other idiots trying to hide in the exact same bush. "And can you tell me why the hell you guys are hiding in _this_ bush?"

"We can't let lose you again, Cici," Anri said determinedly, "So we're going to stick with you no matter what."

The human groaned before pulling back into the safety of the forest to glare at the rest of them. "So…once we get in we're splitting up. Me, Anri and the other blonde dumbass (like, hey!) are going to the altar on the south side and you guys are looking at the confessional on the north side. We all meet up here with one extra dumbass and everyone better come back alive or else I'll revive you and strangle you myself! Got it?!"

The aconite spirit snorted, "Way to make a motivational speech, Cici."

"Shut up!" He then pulled over his knapsack and took out the vial of blight. It had already eaten away most of the branch and fuzzy white patches were forming around the sides of the glass. He needed to get rid of this soon before the whole vial would have to be disposed of. In the end, he was the one that had to go out in the open first, as the flower plants couldn't risk getting the blight he was intentionally releasing. "Step back and stay out of the way, got it?"

They gave him the thumbs up. Taking in a deep breath, he pulled off the cork holding the blight in and threw it as hard as he could so it would land in the middle of the field. After hearing the vial break, he ran straight back into the woods, watching as the sickness quickly spread. Now normally, stem blight would never move this quickly, but Govert, the little psycho, made a few alterations. But anyways, he made a note to shred the recipe later on, because at the rate it went, it could probably cause a gigantic famine with how quickly it killed plants. If the formula was ever caught by some psychopath (like Govert) or some idiot (like everyone else) whole cities would be doomed.

The sickness spread as quickly as he could run, which was pretty damn fast because he ran away- er, had to chase away a lot of perverts and bastard weeds back in the day. Even though it was necessary and those bilberries were all just a couple of assholes, he cringed and had to cover his ears when they screamed. It was brutal. Like he was killing a crowd of people and all of them were screaming in pain…the thought turned his stomach. He was pretty thankful he hadn't eaten anything, or else he probably would have up-chucked it by now. Seriously, what sane person would be able to stomach listening to that?

Later, he would deny all accounts of him clinging onto Anri and letting himself get hugged by the rest. When the screaming stopped, Lovino peered out of the bushes. A clear path had been cut for them. The wall of bilberry bushes had fallen apart, wilted into dead branches and sagged to the ground. Well…that was easy. The blight was still moving, albeit slower than before. He motioned for them to move and as discreetly as they could…which was pretty much smashing through all the dead and dying underbrush to get to the tower.

One window was conveniently open and Govert swung a hook onto the sill.

"Okay," Abel began, experimentally tugging the rope, "I'll go first since…" he gave them all a bland look, "I'm probably the only real man here." Suffice to say, that earned a harsh kick in the shins from Lovino, and a hard whack from Anri and Michelle.

"Like, whatever, let's just like, get this over with before we totally get caught," the blonde, orchid sprite said, nervously twirling his hair and looking from side to side. "Like I totally don't want those ugly trolls to be like here and like mess up my totally awesome hair."

Govert jumped onto the rope right after Abel got inside, "I want to see all her stuff! Maybe I can take some back and see if I'll finally get you that three-headed snake you always wanted, Lovino!"

"Why the hell would I want that?" Lovino hissed, "And keep your goddamn voices down! At this rate, it doesn't matter if we got the bilberries, we'll attract all the guards here!"

Michelle pulled the irritated Italian back, "Well, it's not like your 'quiet' voice is helping matters either you know." She merely shrugged when the herbalist glared at her and looked up at Abel, who had just gotten into the room. "Looks like you're next-"

"WHEEEEE!" Govert yelled, as he practically ran right up the tower walls, using the rope as a simple guide to get him to the window.

"Ahhh! Please be quiet Govert!" Anri wailed and she practically ran right after him. She ended up running straight into the ivy sprite and making them both fall into the window. Lovino cringed at the crash. If they had to be idiots, couldn't they do so quietly?

Feliks fingered the rough rope, "Ewww, like, if I use this my beautiful porcelain hands will like, get blisters and stuff and be all totally gross!" Before he could protest, Michelle threw him over her shoulder.

"Hmph, this is what you get for inviting pansy flowers to the party Cici!" the pigtailed girl called over her back.

"It's not like I wanted him here dammit!" But she ignored him. Instead, she grabbed the rope and pulled herself up and the complaining blonde without so much as a sweat. At the top, she threw the orchid sprite into the window with as much gentleness as a sack of potatoes.

Abel and Anri peered over the edge, and they whispered…or more like yelled quietly (if that was even possible), "Time to get up Cici!"/"Hurry up already, brat."

"I'm moving, I'm moving!" he snapped louder than he meant to. He carefully grabbed the rope and climbed as quickly as he could up to the window. Which wasn't that fast, but give him a break! Comparing him to a bunch of superhuman idiots who had no freaking limits whatsoever was a bit unfair for him, who while amazing in his own right, was still kinda human and couldn't exactly run up walls at the speed of fucking light.

So far, so good. Things were going off quietly and he was halfway there. Just a bit more and he was done! But as he was climbing, a stray rock lodged in the tower wall fell onto the ground with a loud _thunk_. Of course. Of fucking course things weren't going to go well!

It as then that several snarls could be heard and he looked down in horror as several guards began to creep out of the shadows, heading towards the source of the noise. Him.

He kind of just…froze for a bit, unsure if he should move or not with the guards right freaking there. A single movement could cause them to look up and BAM, they'd be caught. He couldn't make out what they were saying exactly, they were trolls and communicated mainly through a series of grunts and gestures. Now if there's one thing people got right about any mystical creatures, it was that trolls were big, ugly, and the stupidest things you could ever meet.

Ugly #1 was waving his arms at the dead patch of bilberries and hit Ugly #2 over the head, while making a bunch of other guttural, growling noises assumed to be scolding. Ugly #2 made an annoyed grunt and shoved Ugly #1 over and pointed at the dead field and, was trying to convey that it wasn't him. Ugly #1 apparently didn't believe him and whacked him with a club.

This of course, led to a fight and before long it was all yelling and punches. Lovino shot his head up when he heard some muted arguing from the top and nearly let go of the rope when he was pulled sharply upwards. Anri leaned out over the window and put a finger to her mouth. _We'll carry you up, stay quiet,_ she mouthed, or that's what it looked like she was trying to say. He nodded, not trusting himself to speak and patiently waited to get pulled up. He was almost…almost there. Another foot and he would be homefree.

Of course, that's when the rope had to snap. Dammit, this is why idiots like them shouldn't play with rope!

"Fuck!" he yelled, unable to keep himself from cursing as he began to fall back to the earth. He heard the fighting below stop and confused grunts from below. They were so fucked. Or they would be, if Abel hadn't grabbed his hand at the last second and all but threw him into the room.

He ended up falling flat on his back, breathing heavily and trying to calm himself down after having a mini panic attack earlier. In fact, everyone seemed to be doing the same, and they all held their breath as they waited to see if the trolls would try to pursue the sound or continue their infighting. They all breathed again with the sound of smashed skulls and broken ribs.

"Damn it kid, leave it to you to have the worst fucking luck in the world huh?" Abel ruffled his hair, "Try not to get into trouble again brat. Can't save your ass next time around."

Lovino pouted, "I'm not a kid and it wasn't even my fault!" And he gave him a hard shove, while glaring accusingly at the others, "I can take care of myself, so make sure you watch your own fucking ass before I kick it all the way to next week!" He brushed himself off and looked around the room. Leave it to Nicnevin to use such a tacky looking bedroom. The room was practically covered in jewels and pretty trinkets mixed with expensive looking vases and tapestries. It was a mess, and the only real space was where the bed was. Bitch needed to learn how to decorate, because she obviously didn't know how.

"Now, now," Anri said in a placating voice and pulling Lovino to the present, "Let's get going, we don't have much time left do we?" They ended up going into the hall, which was just as ostentatious as the bedroom except less messy and thankfully more organized. It was like walking into a goddamn vault, where everything was probably worth a million cities and then some.

"Shit…" Lovino said, glaring at the place, "It's like somebody puked glitter all over this place."

"But like, oh my God these emeralds totally match my eyes!" Feliks said excitedly, holding up a pair for all of them to see.

"We're not here to shop prissy!" Michelle retorted, Lovino was about to nod his head when she continued, "We're here to get Cici's hubby back! Save those for when they get married!"

"We're not-"

"Save your act for later," Abel said suddenly, grabbing the ivy and rosemary sprites' shoulders, "Let's get going saplings, we've got a plan to finish, remember?"

His sister agreed enthusiastically, "Of course! And when we're done, _then_ we can get Cici's dowry!"

"I just said, we're not-" But of course, nobody listened to him and merely cheered in agreement. He sighed exasperatedly, and glared at three idiots that would be leaving them, "Don't be a fucking hero and get hurt, got it dumbasses? Take care of your seeds…you've got enough blood right?"

Abel snorted in amusement, "Don't you worry about us. Worry about yourself, Cici."

"Ciao, Cici! I'll treat you to eight-legged goat milk when we get back!" Govert declared, and he suddenly hugged the smaller man.

"G-get the fuck off of me bastard!" Lovino squeaked, and was so flustered that he didn't notice the vial the ivy sprite dropped in his bag. He backed away, waving ecstatically as he walked off.

"Pshaw, _we'll_ be catching frogs together instead when we get back, right Cici?" Michelle called out, before being dragged away by the annoyed aconite along with the still waving ivy sprite.

Anri tapped his shoulder, "We should get going too, Cici. We don't want to miss Antonio right?"

"Right…" he replied distractedly. Okay…maybe he was the teensiest, weensiest bit worried about them. I mean, they were sticking their necks out to help him find someone they had never even met. Swallowing his guilt, he moved forward, barely remembering to snap and insult Feliks as the orchid continued to ramble about fashion and the like.

His thoughts ended up drifting to Antonio. _'Bastard…you better not be dead,'_ he said to himself, and looked up at one of the tapestries hung on the wall. Ironically, it was a picture of Jesus, shepherding his flock. For a second he paused, praying, _'God, I know I'm a fucking awful Catholic and I hate your church for all its worth. But please, for the love of all that is holy just don't let Antonio or any of my dumbasses get hurt. Amen.' _

"Cici, like are you coming or not?"

"Yeah, yeah, just shut up already!" he replied, running over to catch up to them.

He let the Anri hold his hand. Of course, because she was the one that was probably scared and worried and needed reassurance. "Be careful Lovino, stay by my side okay?" she said, looking at him with the usual worry and fuss.

He huffed, "I'm not a kid!" He caved when her eyes started watering. "Okay, okay I won't! Happy?" It took a moment for him to realize that she had called him by his real name. It was funny how foreign it sounded in her voice. They walked in relative silence, occasionally looking at the map they had duplicated and double-checking for patrols.

* * *

They had been walking for quite a while, the halls suspiciously devoid of any patrols whatsoever. He was expecting trolls, gargoyles, hell he was hoping for an extra bilberry bush to pound into the ground but just…nothing.

"What the fuck is up with this place? Where the hell are all the guards?" he said aloud to the other two.

"Well, maybe they're more clever than you give them credit for. Perhaps they're all hiding? Should we join in on the game?" Govert said, looking inside a small urn. Like anyone could be hiding in there. The aconite sprite swiped the urn before the idiot could break it.

"Don't touch anything dumbass. This is a stealth mission and a single piece out of place could be very, very bad for all of us." The ivy sprite pouted, but let the urn stay where it was, although he cast longing looks at it as they continued onward.

"Hmm, well you know, maybe they're all taking a nap? I mean, it is past noon, maybe they're sleeping off lunch?"

"No self-respecting guard would ever do that, you idiot," Abel retorted, looking about the halls, vigilant of any guards that may be coming by. Govert was wandering off to the front, practically touching everything he shouldn't be touching even when Abel told him not to. Brat needed a fucking leash. At least Michelle, the country bumpkin, could at least…Scratch that. The moment he saw her toying with the gold dresses and swinging around swords was when he decided he would make two leashes for the both of them. Idiots.

"Well she's got a point you know. Eating can tire you out! I mean even you- What is that?!" Govert shrieked suddenly, shrinking back before running back to hide behind Abel. "Scaaaary…"

"Wha? What's got your knickers in a twist?" Michelle asked, looking back curiously before snorting. "Of course you're an upstream kinda guy, figured you'd be a scaredy cat like the rest of them and- EEEK!" she yelped and then she too, was hiding behind Abel like some newborn child. "Ewwwwy! Get rid of it, get rid of it right now!"

"When did you two become like Feliks?" he sighed, running a tired hand through his hair. "Where is it?" They pointed, trembling, towards the end of the corridor.

"Keep going down and you'll see it. All the way down to the door over there!" Govert whispered, "You don't see it now but when you get close you'll see it. It's freaky!" Michelle nodded vigorously in agreement. He checked the map they had again. It should have been recent, so why was there this weird door here? Whatever it was, it was in their way.

"Fine, let's go see it." The other two seemed ready to complain before he pinned them both with his infamous death glare. Walking forward, the door still seemed completely normal, a little decorative with all the fancy carvings on the front, but nothing so special as to scare away these two. Stepping right in front of the door, he began to feel an ominous chill. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up on end. It was annoying. He wished it would go away. "There's nothing here. So stop cowering and let's get on with this already."

"No, no! There really was something here!" Michelle protested, Govert nodding along with her. Abel scoffed and opened the door. Or tried to. He furrowed his brow, then pulled harder.

"What the-" There was a loud crash and then the door groaned. Yep, the door groaned. The handles sunk into the door and out popped a head. A pure gold horse's head. A very familiar horse head.

"I'm afraid you aren't allowed to come in," it said placidly, "At least not yet. The preparations aren't done yet I'm afraid. Please come back at another time."

"Motherfucker, so you showed your damn face again," Abel ground out, before trying to punch the door down. He smiled grimly when the door bent backwards from the force, but was startled when instead of breaking in two, the door pushed him back. He ended up falling onto his rear. "What the-?"

"That's quite enough. No need for violence here."

"Are you kidding with me? I want to go in and you want to stay shut, that only means I've got no choice to beat you down," he said gruffly, cracking his knuckles.

"Yeah, you get him Abel!"/"Punch him in the gut!" the ivy and rosemary said simultaneously. Except they were hiding behind one of the columns far away from the all the action.

"Why the hell are you all the way over there?!"

"I've grown weary of your games. I'm afraid I cannot allow you entrance. Now…" The head began to sink into itself, creaking and twisting until it became some twisted mockery of a human skull. "GUARDS! GUARDS! GUARDS!"

"Fuck! Be quiet you!" He grabbed the head, shoving the jaw tight, but the sound continued.

"GUARDS! GUARDS! GUARDS!" Now he was getting seriously pissed. He stomped onto the ground, making a small crater into the once pristine marble floor. He pulled a chunk out and stuffed the rock down the damned horse's throat as far as it could go. The alarm spluttered out and stopped.

He dusted his hands and turned to the other two, still cowering behind the column, "And that's how you turn off the alarm idiots. Grow some backbone next time!"

Instead of the obedient, 'Yes sir' or the some praise, all he got was a horrified, "Watch out!"

There was a loud cracking sound and suddenly, the door- no, the wall fell crumbled down, revealing a gigantic stone ball. "Heeeheheheh, it's pancake time!" a voice said above, and Abel squinted to see a tiny little gargoyle at the top, brandishing a wicked looking halberd three times his size. And that's when they all started running. Including the gargoyle. Although the damned statue was the reason they were all running in the first place, as the movement caused the ball to move forward. "Shit! Brats, pick up the pace!" he yelled, sprinting as fast as he could down the hallway.

Michelle seemed to get the idea quick enough, as she was sprinting at full speed down the halls. Govert seemed to be absolutely fascinated by the gargantuan wrecking ball that was rolling down and ripping apart everything in sight. "Move your ass, Govert!"

"But how does that work..? I mean, he's so small and the ball is so big! Even if-" Abel punched him. Hard. The idiot was sent flying. Meh. It was faster than running or dragging the idiot along. Besides, even if he was knocked out, Abel was sure he sent him flying far enough to regain consciousness eventually. Eventually.

"Ahhh! Y-you've got to be kidding me! I mean, I-I could outrun a bear but this is a little ridiculous for the old patrolling right?" Michelle panted.

"Just shut up and run!" Eventually, Govert soon came to view. Unfortunately, he seemed to have completely forgotten that he was supposed to be running and not searching through his damn coat and eating waffles. "Didn't I tell you to run already you stupid sapling!?" The ivy sprite gave him a blank look.

"Ohhhhh….so that's what we're doing? I kinda got hit in the head so-" If he could, Abel would have smacked his head against the wall. Why was he paired with these two incompetents again? Why? So this time, he kicked into action.

"Ow, ow, ow! No need for the kicking and all! I was just kidding about the memory loss- OW!"

"Stop that chattering Govert! Ain't no use around here, use your legs not your brain!" Michelle shrieked as the gargoyle-manned wrecking ball came rolling towards them. It was only when they began running did they realize how hard it actually was. They had to dodge various trinkets and piles of junk along the way. So maybe being an insufferable slob was actually working for the tyrannical bitch. Was it him, or were the hallways getting kinda endless? And it felt the floor began to feel a little steeper, as he had to take even greater care as ran so he wouldn't fall forward.

"S-s-so far! GAH Not the hat!" Govert wailed as the tiny bastard running up on top of the ball decided it would be even better to start throwing rocks at them as they ran. The red-eyed sprite had the audacity to just stop to pick up and dust off his hat.

"Get going you dumbass! Unless you want your ass painted on that ball then jump over there and stop it for us!" Abel said, growing more frustrated with the infuriating sapling. Maybe Cici did have a point on not bringing these idiots. But at least Govert was a useful idiot that happened to have lots of dangerous and hopefully explosive things to stop this thing…right?

"I need my hat!" the ivy sprite wailed and ran even faster to catch up to Abel and Michelle, the latter of which was beginning to slow down.

She was sweating profusely and turning red, but she turned to them with a strained, supposedly smug grin, "P-p-pshaw! T-t-this pace i-is nothing!"

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," the tall, blonde male said, and he threw her over his shoulder. "Don't you go moving back there unless you want to paint the floor!"

"Wahhh,, this wind feels so nice. Just like being at home near the river again…" the pigtailed girl said with shiny, admiring eyes.

"This is nothing like the swamp you live in, stupid hick!" the aconite panted, running twice as hard to get away. "Govert, do you have anything to get that bastard off our backs?"

"Uh…let me check!" he replied, reaching into his coat and pulling out random objects and checking them off as he went and throwing away things he didn't deem important. "Hamster? No. Goat leg. Nah. Paint? Nope. Fish waffles? Not hungry….uh…hmmm….."

"Could you hurry the fuck up? At this rate, we're going to just be stains on the ground!" Abel screeched. And goddamn how much did this girl eat? He was already getting tired from lugging her around. He turned around to stare at the smug little bastard running along the top of the gigantic stone ball, intent on running them over. He was practically smashing everything, as the hall was just barely large enough to make room for the thing. Jewels, paintings, hell, even the walls were being ripped and scraped off as it began to pick up speed.

"Oh wait a sec! I got it!" Govert said triumphantly, "Now all we have to do is…" he stopped and threw the vial at the ball.

If you're expecting something cool to happen or something like that, you're dead wrong.

"I thought you said you got it!" the blonde yelled when nothing happened.

"Ah well, when I said I got it, I said that I finally found that thing I was looking for! I was supposed to get rid of it years ago but I lost it in my voluminous coat pockets! Isn't that funny? Hahahahah!" Abel had half a mind just to push the dumbass into the ball's path.

"Bastard! Keep looking for something!" the blonde grunted, shifting the brunette on his shoulders. He then heard snoring. "Oi, oi, you can't fall asleep on my fucking back you brat!" He smacked her on the leg and then on the behind.

"Owowow! What are ya doing? I was taking a nap you know!" the rosemary said indignantly, rubbing at her eyes.

"Now's not the time! If you can nap you can run!" And he threw her onto her feet. She fell back a few feet from the sudden movement but quickly caught up. Once seeing that the girl could run on her own two feet he turned to Govert, "Get us out of here! An escape or anything! Just get us out of here or break that ball!"

"I'm looking, I'm looking!" the ivy sprite said, frantically searching through his coat for an answer. "Aha!" He pulled out a grappling hook, "How about this-"

"Look out!" Michelle said suddenly. They both looked ahead and saw that his was a fucking dead end. But that wasn't even the most surprising thing. Everyone gaped for a second, not believing what they were seeing.

"Ah, it's you guys!" Antonio said, looking just as surprised as they were.

"Move out of the way dumbass!" the three sprites screamed and the pirate ducked back underneath the floor. Then all of sudden, the ground fell from underneath them.

It took five seconds to get down.  
It took 10 seconds to hide.  
It took 1 second for the ceiling to cave in.  
...

The pirate was pretty sure he had to be the luckiest man alive, as he had somehow managed to survive the entire collapse thanks to a strange statue that managed to shield him at the last second. But dust and rocks aside, he found himself sitting among the ruins with no person in sight. Well, that didn't take long. She must have underestimated him after all if he was placed in such an easily spotted location. But upon finding no one, he began to worry. This was a predicament now, wasn't it?

And now, he was currently searching for the possibly dead companions and family of his precious Lovino. His darling would definitely not be happy with him if he found out the pirate let Abel die, despite being a pain in the ass. And he may or may not have felt slightly guilty that the blonde man had probably come here to save him and had died on the expedition.

He pulled away rock after rock, calling them over and over again. So far, his efforts had been fruitless except for the black halberd he had found. He recalled the odd gargoyle-like creature running on top of the ball had one strapped to his back. He pried it out of the rubble to examine it. The blade was completely black, like obsidian except far more solid. He ended up using it as a sort of crowbar to lift up the heavier bits of rock. After a good twenty minutes, Antonio threw himself onto the ground, frustrated.

"Shit…" He decided to try and call out one more time, "Abel! Bastard! Anyone there? Call out to me if you're alive!"

He wasn't surprised that no one answered back. He was surprised, however, when a rock about the size of his head started flying towards him. He jumped out of the way at the last second, feeling the rock brush across the bridge of his nose. "Who's there?" he called, brandishing the halberd. He hadn't used a halberd in a while, but he'd make do with it for now. Anything was better than that puny knife.

"Shaddup already! You asked if I was there and I'm right fucking here. Whoop dee doo." Antonio slumped his shoulders in relief at the familiar snarky voice.

Walking over, he found the blonde struggling to pull himself out of the odd hole in the ground. He extended a hand, and after a good deal of glaring, the man grudgingly took it. "Don't think I'm going to say thanks you bastard."

"I know." Honestly, Antonio now understood where Lovino's own grumpiness came from. "Where are your friends? Are they down there as well?" he asked before sticking his head in the hole, "Hellooooo?"

"Dumbass, of course they aren't! They're probably around here somewhere. They're cockroaches, a little rockslide isn't going to kill them," he said nonchalantly, before walking off in another direction. "Brats! Get your asses out of here before I drag them out for you!"

Antonio jumped back when a hand reached out from the hole he had been looking in, "Ahhhh, don't be so noisy…I was sleeping ya know!" Without thinking, he grabbed the hand and pulled. "Ow, ow, ow, gentler please! Sheesh is that how you treat a lady?"

"Ah,_ lo siento_, I was worried," the pirate replied kindly, before pulling more gently to get the person out. It was probably a woman, but one couldn't be too sure. Francis could make a convincing woman's voice when he wanted to.

There was a pregnant silence. "It's you!" And Antonio was startled again, when the hand pulled harshly on him and a young woman jumped out. She looked a little scraped and bruised but otherwise, seemed fine. She reminded him strongly of Elizaveta, with her boyish clothing and brash way of speaking. She was fairly pretty (but not as pretty as his Lovino), with tanned skin and twin ponytails. She brushed off her dusty overalls before spitting in her hand and extending it to him. "I'm Michelle, nice to meet 'cha!"

"Ah _si,_ I'm Antonio-"

"Oh I know who you are!" she interrupted, "Now that we've found you we can finally leave! Time to go find Cici and get the hell out!"

"Not before we find Cici, sapling," Abel called over his shoulder, pulling up the idiot ivy sprite out.

"Ow, ow, ow, that hurts! Don't be so rough!" the red-eyed man whined.

"Ah there you are Govert!" Michelle grabbed his arm, "C'mon over Annie, this is Govert!"  
'Annie' frowned at the nickname but let the woman drag him over all the same. The man seemed younger than Antonio, and was wearing a green overcoat with a green hat, that miraculously stayed intact. The red eyes reminded him of a certain bigoted German but the brown hair disrupted the effect. That and the lack of the use of the word 'awesome' every five seconds.

"Shut up and get out already," Abel said callously.

"I can't because I'm stuck!"

Antonio stepped in, placing his halberd at one of the rocks entrapping the poor man, "Allow me." He grunted as he heaved the rock out of the way and the man slipped out.

"Ahhhhh, I love you!" the man proclaimed, proceeding to squeeze the life out of the human.

"Ah you're welcome! But I have to say that my heart belongs to Lovi~!" he said before prying the enthusiastic male off his person. "Where is my Lovi anyway?"

Abel scowled, "He isn't yours you fucktard. We've got to go pick him up now." He rounded on the previously trapped man, "Give me the mirror. You better not have lost it."

"Of course not!" Govert said indignantly, and he began to dig through his coat before passing over a round, pocket sized mirror. Antonio stared between the three would-be saviors. How could they possibly have survived a fall like that? Any other person would have died. Did this mean they were witches as well or something else?

As if sensing his thoughts, Michelle spoke, "We're sprites just so ya know. We're not exactly human but I'd say we're pretty darn close!" When he simply blinked at her she continued. "Like, we're special cases. We're all bonded to a plant of some kind and stuff. Like I'm rosemary, Govert is ivy, and Abel is aconite. Normally we can't really go too far without, you know, our host plants, but Cici did his witchy spell thing to get us out here. You should thank him next time ya see him! But anywho, we're pretty much those fairy things you humans like to talk about so much. Hope you ain't too freaked out."

It was a little confusing, her explanation. But all of sudden Antonio felt another pang of guilt. He had gotten captured and if Lovino was not here, he was somewhere else in this hellhole. "What are we waiting for then?" he said with strained cheer, "We need to find him!"

"Just hold your horses for a sec, we need to know where he is first of all!" Michelle said, holding him back. And then she frowned, "But you know, we weren't even close to the confessional booths but here you are. It's kinda suspicious now that I think 'bout it...And who would have thunk we'd find you after some old fluke like that?..." she trailed off into thoughtful grumbles. Antonio was struck with a pang of fear, an emotion he hasn't felt in years. Except it wasn't fear for himself this time...

"What the fuck is wrong with this thing?" Abel ground out at the same time, glaring at Govert. "What is this? Why is it blank?"

The red-eyed man widened his eyes. "What? Are you sure? It's just not dark or foggy?"

"Why don't you look at it?" the blonde snarled before shoving the mirror into his hands.

"Ah that means…that means either the mirror is malfunctioning or…or the other side can't answer..."

"Shit," Abel cursed.

Antonio had heard enough and pulled away. He didn't even wait for the others, choosing to climb up the rubble, which had formed a broken, makeshift ramp to get to the higher floor. He pulled himself up to higher ground and ran down the halls, not caring where he was going. He would smash every wall, every door if it would to find his precious Lovino. Witch or not, he was going to kill this Nicnevin bitch the moment he saw her too. No one made threats to his darling without losing a hand or two. _Lovino…wait for me._

* * *

**Writing action is difficult. Again, I'm gonna try to wrap this up in 2 - 3 more chapters. So...LET'S TAKE THIS UP A NOTCH. Chapters will be longer, if you guys don't mind that. And I hope y'all are prepared for the length of new chapters. I hope this was satisfactory. This is all rather new to me, so I'd appreciate some critique if you have any. But that's all, please leave a review on your way out! Again, many thanks to those who reviewed. Thou art the fountain of energy upon which I draw the strength to write. Peace out yo. **


	8. The Girl in Chains

**This is the monster that was created when I was writing around 12AM at night after listening to creepy music and the American McGee's Alice soundtrack. That soundtrack is freaky. Seriously. But I hope you guys can get through this one. It's a doozy! **

**Disclaimer: I don't APH. Capische? **

...

* * *

**Chapter 7: The Girl in Chains **

Lovino jumped. He turned around but saw no one behind him. He swore he heard something loud, like a big bang at the northern side of the building. Goddammit. He hoped that Abel and the other idiots kicked whoever's ass it was that was chasing them. If he didn't then the Italian would make sure that the aconite sprite would never be able to live it down. It was relatively quiet on their end, with a few poor slaves and the rare troll. Nothing they couldn't sneak past.

He kept thinking back to his few visits to this place. What he felt now was so similar to that time. He'd always try to forget and move on, but it was hard to push it away. It had changed so much since he had last come, when he was…15? 16? Heh, it was so long ago he would be more surprised if things stayed the same. Nicnevin had definitely changed since then. Or maybe that's how things always were; he was just too blind and desperate to see it. His last visit was when he woke up, it was a day he would never forget…

...

_..._

_Flashback_

_A fourteen year old (oh yeah…it was his birthday…) Lovino stood in front of the doors of the castle. The path was difficult but he'd always had a good memory. Or a good memory pertaining to things he actually cared about…and trust him when he said there weren't many things that made him give a damn about back then. This time, he was cordially invited to a party she was throwing for his birthday. She was going to teach him a very special form of magic that only witches like him and her were able to learn. All he needed was to bring little Mary. She was a very young lamb, only a few months old and still wobbled a bit when she walked. _

"_Shhh, it's okay girl," he said soothingly. He patted the lamb on the head and it leaned onto him before decidedly chewing on his dark blue cloak affectionately. He didn't bother pushing it away, as he realized how nervous he was. He hadn't been out so far from home without some flower keeping an eye on him, so it was a little strange for him to actually be alone. _

_He stood at the doors, which opened inwards for him as soon as he knocked. A man guided him inside, pulling him into another room with a grand set of doors. He couldn't help but gaze at the wondrous things before him. __All about the halls were mirrors, shining and bright, seeming to show other worlds filled with wonder and adventure. But he wasn't allowed to linger for too long as he was ushered into the great dining room. __He entered numbly, pulling the little lamb along by the string he had tied loosely around her neck. He didn't notice that Mary was frightened and trembling. _

_The hall was decorated with flowers, all chatty and cheery. Fancy chandeliers, and a great fountain sitting off to the side. Bits of glitter and confetti popped around the room in occasional bursts. There was a table at the center, filled with the most delicious sweets. Sitting at the chairs were porcelain dolls, so beautiful and realistic that they may as well have been human. They smiled at him, accepted him with open arms. They waved to him, gesturing for him to sit down in the spot to the right of the main chair at the very end. He took it gladly, smiling and waving like a fool. _

_He waited patiently for the lady of honor, the mistress of the house. At this point in time, he had never been more grateful for the queen's arrival. She was a blessing. When he was at his lowest, she saved him and gave him a home. She helped him find a way to talk to his family again. She let them see each other and protected him from danger. It made him feel a bit guilty. He would have to thank her again when he saw her. At this time, he would do anything for the kind lady who saved his life. Yes, he would do whatever she needed of him. A tiny voice inside said this was suspicious, that this was wrong. It disappeared when she walked in the room. _

_She looked as beautiful as ever, in a pure white gown with ruffles and frills similar to a wedding dress. When she saw him, she gave him a warm smile. "Lovino, my dear, I'm glad you could make it!" She ruffled his hair affectionately, and he smiled back. _

_She lifted up a dainty wine glass, "We are gathered here today to celebrate the fourteenth birthday of our dearest new witch! May he live long and his magic last forever! Now let the feast begin!" she announced, and his plate was filled with the prettiest cakes and cookies. He looked down the table and saw that the others' plates were similarly filled with puffy pastries. He picked up his fork and was ready to eat when something tugged at his cloak. _

_He had forgotten Mary was there. She bleated warningly. When did she get there again? He didn't remember…oh…it was for the Queen. He jerked his arm back, ignoring the poor lamb in favor of the full plate before him. But for some odd reason, his body wouldn't move. _

"_Don't eat it! Please, don't do it!" _

"_You'll regret it!" _

"_Don't eat me please!" _

_His gut twisted. These voices….where were they coming from? His vision blurred and instead of the pretty cakes, he saw people. People's faces were plastered on his plate. It was like their visages had been sliced cleanly off their skulls. They were thick and flabby like those pancakes Anri tried to make. Their faces were contorted with fear. They screamed and begged for him to run. When he looked up, the dolls were no longer beautiful, but rotted wooden things, with smiles forcibly stapled to their faces. The plants that seemed so cheery were dead in their pots. Everywhere he looked, there was blood. It covered every surface, every person, everything…even his hands were…! Then it shifted back to the pretty scene before him. He shook his head. Illusion…illusion….none of that was real…it couldn't be. Nevertheless, he couldn't eat. His body wouldn't let him. _

_The Queen was unhappy. Was the food not to his liking? No, he was merely ill. She decided to show him the magic earlier than planned. She took his hand and guided him to an altar. It looked like he was in church again, except it was by far more welcoming and beautiful. The mosaics…the cross…the beautiful tapestries that lined the walls, the windows that suffused the room with light, it was everything he envisioned a true church should look like, should feel like. _

_She led him to the altar and dragged the rope that was wrapped around Mary's neck. The little lamb bleated in pain, it looked at him with pleading eyes. He did nothing. When did she get there? He turned around to see that all the dolls sitting in the pews, filling up the room. A heavy hand fell on his shoulder, "Now, don't be scared young one. This is a special rite that every witch goes through," Nicnevin crooned soothingly. _

_She picked up the lamb and tied it down to the altar. His gut churned. His vision shifted and then the room was not so beautiful. He could see it, all those whose lives had ended here. Their screams, their cries…the walls were covered in pictures of their bodies, twisted in grotesque ways and eyes filled with pain. Their flesh lined the walls and throbbed like a living, beating heart. It was like he was sitting in a monster, he stood within the belly of the beast. The scene then suddenly changed back to the peaceful one, but he could still feel the darkness lurking at the edges. _

"_Lovino, Lovino, take the knife," she said, gently placing a wicked dagger in his hand. "Now, cut out the lamb's heart and place it before the cross." _

_He couldn't speak, he couldn't move. How were you supposed to breathe again? In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. It was no good…it was like nothing was coming in. I can't take this…I can't…I can't…I can't have blood on my hands again!_

_When he looked up again, he saw that he was no longer holding the dagger. He watched in horror as the lady stabbed Mary in the chest and ripped out its heart. The room was filled with raucous applause and cheering. "Now, my dear, eat your fill! For the flesh of this sacrificial lamb will bring you power as you have never had before. Eat and finally enter this holy sanctuary of witches! Be one with us!" The crowd cheered in agreement. And now the world was no longer beautiful. Now that the illusion was gone it could never be repaired. _

_He turned on his heels and ran. He ignored the woman's cries, the monsters' indignant yells. It was as if a fog had been lifted from his mind and he could see clearly now. Clearly see the truth behind this place. It was beautiful before, but now he could see that this 'holy place' was tainted. From that day on, he was too terrified to venture too far out. The beach was the farthest he would ever go alone. _

_End Flashback._

_..._

* * *

...

And now…now….another sacrifice, but this time with a fucking human being. He was suddenly hit by the horrifying image of Antonio sitting at the altar with Lovino himself holding the knife as Nicnevin forced him to cut out the man's heart. That's it…pride be damned.

"Oh my god, oh my god that is soooo gross. Just…just get rid of it all fast okay Cici?" Feliks said, awkwardly patting the Italian's shoulder as he puked. Anri, on the other hand, was rubbing small circles on his back.

"Sshhh, it's okay sweetheart...It's okay Lovino, it's okay. We'll find him, I promise," she said with a determined expression on her face. Then it softened again, "So don't be sad, we'll find him!"

He could only nod to that. He didn't trust his voice at the moment. He let Feliks clean his face up. He was surprised when the sprite pulled out a sprig of lavender for him, pinning it to his shirt. "It like totally helps people relax you know? It's a little smelly, but this way you don't get any more wrinkles or spit out any more breakfast, honey."

"Thanks…" he grumbled, and the blonde patted him on the head.

They continued walking, although this time at a much slower pace for his sake. Damn his weak stomach. He supposed it was a good thing he hadn't eaten anything, because he had only spat up watery bile. He would feel even worse if there were…he was going to stop this line of thought right now. He started feeling ill again when they went down a familiar corridor and stopped in front of a sickeningly familiar door.

"Ah, over here, I think we're getting closer Cici!" Anri whispered excitedly, dragging him over. Whipping out the map, she nodded vigorously, "We're so close Cici, let's get going!"

"Oi, oi, shouldn't you be the careful one here?!" Lovino screeched, as she peeked through the keyhole.

"Mmm, so dark…As far as I can tell, it's quite empty…"

"Well, like there's no time like the present yeah?" Feliks added unhelpfully, flipping his blonde hair.

"No one asked for your opinion! For all we know, it could be a trap!" the herbalist snapped.

The chrysanthemum paid him no mind however, "Well, Cici, there isn't any way to the altar except through here. You said yourself this is the only way in. If it's a trap and she knew we were here it wouldn't make a difference whether we went in now or never."

"Che, t-that, that doesn't mean we should just charge in!" the Italian blustered before crossing his arms.

Feliks and Anri gave each other a look. What is up with people thinking he was stupid or something? Seriously almost every time he told them to be careful they looked at each other that pretty much said 'There he goes again'. It pissed him off!

"Fine, if you want to go charging in so bad then let's do it!" he pushed past the two and waltzed right in. It was pitch black when he entered, the only light coming from the door. He didn't remember the dining hall being _this_ freaky looking.

It seemed as if the hall hadn't been dusted in years and as if the dolls hadn't even moved since his last visit several years ago. The dolls were either positioned to be sitting at the long dining table, pretending to eat and drink, or made to look like they were dancing. They were dressed in fancy, frilly clothes, and their faces were permanently plastered with fake smiles. But what were most unnerving were their eyes. They were glassy and seemed to turn to him, pinning him with their cloudy stares.

"Damn it's dark…" he said absently, squinting in the darkness to see the doors beyond. He definitely did not shriek when the other two snuck up behind him. He was just surprised. Just a bit nervous with all the creepy-ass dolls all over the place in a dimly lit room.

"Ewww, look at this place. Does she like not care at all about like her feng shui and keeping a happy home and stuff? Because that can totally wreck your balance," the orchid said, looking around the dark room with a critical eye. Lovino face palmed.

"Ahhh, so dark!" Anri exclaimed, before lighting a lantern, "Huh, that's better! Now we can see!" Just as she said that, the door behind them slammed shut. Typical.

"Fuck!" the herbalist cried, running back to the door and slamming against it fruitlessly. "Shit, open up you motherfucker! Open up!"

"Ahhhhhh!" Feliks screeched, "I think that one just coughed!" He jumped behind the chrysanthemum sprite, who looked completely unfazed by it all. The only sign of actual worry on her face was the smallest frown on her face.

"Well that's not good," she said, as if talking about the weather.

"Yeah, it's not fucking good! How the hell are we going to get out now?" Lovino cried out, getting close to hysterics. He couldn't stand this room any longer. Too many awful memories…and he felt completely on edge, it was as if all the dolls were staring at him, watching him and waiting for him to let his guard down…

"Cici, I need you to take a deep breath. In. Out. That's right, that's good! When we get back I promise we can eat some waffles! I'll even make some of that chocolate you love so much," Anri said, rubbing circles comfortingly into his back. For once, he didn't push her away. "Shhh, it's not like it was before. Remember, Antonio is just around the corner! We're almost there honey…shhh, shh, it's okay."

"Okay, I get it!" the Italian said, a little irritated. Seriously, he was fine!...Okay maybe he was having a panic attack, but she didn't need to baby him and coo in his face and all that! "Let's…let's just find the altar and go. Antonio better be fucking back there…"

"Like, we're not gonna get there any sooner with all your sniffling, Cici. Let's go already! These things are giving me the creeps," Feliks said nervously, shifting his gaze from left to right as if to keep an eye on the dolls that seemed to be glaring at them. "Like, this is just like that story that Toris told me who heard it from the wisteria who heard it from the dandelions who heard it from-"

"Yeah, yeah, what the fuck ever, let's…let's just go already!" he said quickly, grabbing his own lantern and moving forward, intent on not looking a single doll in the face. He was sure he would lose his nerve if he looked into one of their eyes.

Anri walked on, without fear. She seemed to find the dolls as a minor annoyance at most. She even had the audacity to coo at how cute some of them looked. She seriously had a twisted idea of what cute was, but he supposed that wasn't too surprising if you were the type of person that thought gigantic black widows with a thousand eyes were cute. He may not be afraid to kill a spider, but that didn't mean he didn't think they weren't gross. The orchid sprite was not taking the walk through the dining hall well. He was jumping at everything and practically clung to the female sprite's arm. At least Lovino had the guts to swallow it down and keep whatever was left of his pride intact by walking forward by himself. Even if he was shaking just a little bit. It was cold! And was it just him, or did it feel as if this room became ten times bigger than he remembered?

"Help…" A voice? He whirled his head around to see where it came from. He shrugged it off to paranoia. It was so quiet, he must have been hearing things…right?

"Help me…" Okay, so it was getting louder…It was getting louder and it was creeping him out. Could anyone else hear it? He searched the other two's faces and saw no change in their expression. Maybe this place was affecting him more than he thought. Bad memories of this place was probably leaving a bit unnerved is all.

"**He**LP m**Ee**eE**E**e**E!**"

The Italian shrieked at the sound and screamed when he saw something run at him from the shadows. This caused Anri to scream and then well…a chain reaction kind of thing he was sure you recognize. But Anri, instead of standing petrified like a certain blonde did, ran straight in front of the young brunet and drop-kicked whatever was charging them. Hearing whatever it was smash across the other side of the room quelled their fears for but a moment. They stood there, panting heavily and not speaking, fearing that another sound would cause the thing to return for more.

They jumped when the voice spoke up again, "Help me…" the voice cried, and was followed by loud, heaving sobs. It took a moment for Lovino to realize that it was a female's voice. "Please, anybody, somebody! I know you're there, I..I…WAHHHHH!" Goddamn it sounded pitiful. The voice sounded painfully young, like around ten…twelve years at most? But that little girl could be anything from a doll to some other crazy monster locked up in this castle.

They tried to walk around the source of the sound as quietly as possible with Anri taking the lead, all of them dimming their lanterns until they could barely see at all. It was then that the noise began to _follow _them did Lovino start having a mini panic attack. "Are you there? Are you there? Where are you, where are you?"

They started walking a faster. So did the thing, "Where are you? Where are you?"

They were practically running. The only difference being that they had to slow down to quiet their footsteps somewhat. "I can smell you. I can taste you. But where are you? Where are you?"

"**I** A**sK**eD **W**h**eRe** A**R**e **Y**oU!" it screamed. They all made a run for it, not giving a damn if the thing could see them. There was a door at the end of the hall that led to the altar. If they got there they would be home free. Just a little bit more…! When the thing began chasing after them, they could hear its steps, uneven and heavy…it made all of them run even faster. Lovino's heart was pounding so much from fear that he was scared it would beat right out his chest. He was absolutely terrified, it took all of his brain power just to move his legs and not curl up and cower in the corner at the sound of the enraged screams of the thing behind them. What was worse was that he still couldn't see what the hell it was. When he looked over his shoulder, he would never see the whole thing, just a glimmer of an arm there, a flashing eye there. It only terrified him more.

"Get away from us you ugly bitch!" Feliks screamed at it, before turning up the light and throwing his lantern at the monster. It howled in pain and Lovino finally got a good look at it. It's face looked just like a little girl's. Everything beyond that was just a mess. Her limbs were disproportional and bent at odd angles. When she ran, she ran awkwardly as her legs were twisted about painfully. But it didn't change the fact that she was terrifyingly fast. The little lantern trick changed that. It smashed into one of her porcelain legs and made her fall over. "Ow! Ow! Ow! OW THAT HURT!" she moaned.

It didn't do much but make her angrier as she just began crawling towards them at an even _faster_ pace.

"Shit! Shit! Shit, Anri do you see the exit yet?!" Lovino screamed, running with all his might. Feliks was now running besides him, obviously scared shitless and the two of them trying not to trip over the various bits and bobs that just seemed to appear on the floor. A single trip would be their literal downfall.

"Just keep running!" she called, curling her hands into determined fists. "Keep going, I'll hold her off!" she said, stopping in her tracks and turning on her heel to face the demented doll.

"What?!" That lapse in concentration was what caused Lovino to trip. How ironic. He desperately tried to get up, but found that it was not a simple rock he tripped over, it was because something had latched onto his leg.

A fucking arm had clamped down on his ankle. Nothing attached, just a cracked, messed up arm. Fake or real, he screamed his lungs out.

"CICI!" the two sprites screamed, running over to help him, but it was too late. Chains fell from the ceiling, wrapping tightly around the sprites and suspending them above the ground. They struggled furiously, desperately trying to free themselves to save the petrified brunet.

"AGHHH! LET ME GO, LET ME GO, CICI!" the chrysanthemum sprite screeched as she flailed helplessly in her chains. At one point, she snapped a few of the bindings but before long, she was completely cocooned in the metal chains. Feliks didn't have much luck either.

"AGH, NOT THE FACE! SAVE YOURSELF CICI!" he yelled, before he too was swallowed up into a ball of metal. The two cocoons were then pulled out of sight.

"Feliks! Anri!" He tried to stand up and shake off the dismembered arm off his leg but he was suddenly grabbed by a bunch of arms. It was like fighting against a rock that wouldn't budge. They wouldn't let go and clamped on his legs and arms to keep him from moving. Twisting his neck to see his captors, he could see the dolls that had once been stationary, staring eerily down at him.

And then the giggling started. He hadn't thought it was possible, but this whole place just got even freakier. He struggled even more ferociously, like hell was he gonna go down like this! The broken doll then pulled herself up, cracking her crooked leg a few times to get it back into place. She walked closer, stopping only when she was practically on top of him. He screamed, kicked, and punched, but nothing worked. "L-Let go of me!" he said a bit desperately. He immediately stilled when a cold finger trailed down his face stopping underneath his chin to tilt it upward.

"Why didn't you answer me, little witch?" The creepy smile sent shudders down the Italian's spine, but he was so helpless he couldn't even turn away. "I was calling and calling for help but you didn't do _anything_. So cruel," it said with fake sadness. The grip on his chin bordered on painful. He was screaming in his mind for this…this bitch to _get the fuck off of him_! But when he opened his mouth, all that would come out was a frightened whimper. God damn it all. "Your friend wasn't very nice. He ruined my leg! I've gotten so ugly over the years, do you see what happens when you're not careful?"

The body then collapsed in on itself into a mess of twisted limbs and shattered skin. Skipping forward, into the dim lantern's light, was a young girl. She looked to be only around twelve and for all appearances, seemed like an innocent little girl. The only thing that belied her appearance was the unnerving, unblinking, set of dead, black eyes. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Ermelinda, the doll master! I am in charge of this place and you can't come through here without permission from the mistress!" she said brightly, wagging her finger at him as if he were some naughty child.

"What the hell do you want from me?" he hissed, trying to sound intimidating. Now that she was no longer that terrifying mess he could feel his anger rising up against his fear.

She placed a dainty finger to her lips, "What do I want? Well, normally, I'd kill you for trespassing. But I'm feeling rather generous and it's gotten so boring sitting and waiting." Her smile grew wider and it looked even more garish with the poor lighting coming only from his fallen lantern.

"That isn't an answer you bi-" A hand slapped him harshly across the face, causing him to whimper in pain. The bitch had fucking _claws_. He could feel the blood dripping down his face and he there was a tiny worry in the back of his mind that it would get infected or scar. It definitely wasn't a shallow or clean cut either by the feel of it. And the fact that she was fucking pinching his injured cheek wasn't helping anyone.

"It's rude to interrupt people you know." _Fucking hypocrite! _"Don't you want to hear me out? I have a nice little proposition for you if you'll stay quiet. Play a game with me! One with lots and lots of riddles! If you win, you may go on your merry way, with the mistress none the wiser about your little break in. If you fail…" She trailed off and let go of his abused cheek. Instead, she caressed his face in an almost tender fashion as she leaned in so close their lips were almost touching, "If you lose, you're mine."

He gulped nervously at the girl's eyes. They were filled with an odd sort of desire that he couldn't quite place. He wet his lips, "If I win, you'll let me and everyone else go?" She smiled brightly and nodded enthusiastically. It's not like he could do anything else in this. He'd have to play along for now…He looked her straight in the eye, hoping he didn't look as scared as he felt, "Deal."

As soon as those words left his lips did the dolls suddenly let go, dropping him harshly onto the marble floor. "Ow, goddammit!" he yelled, before scrambling to pick up his lantern. Just as he stood up, he fell back down again with a yelp as a chair was pushed under him. "Shit, fucking-"

"Language," the Ermelinda bitch admonished. She clapped and then another chair was pulled up for her while a table was set between them, complete with a broken tea set and rotting pastries filled with what looked suspiciously like pig intestines. The girl ignored the maggots crawling in it, and cut herself a slice of the cake of death. She ate it as if it were the most delicious thing in the world. For the third time today was Lovino incredibly grateful that he skipped breakfast that morning, he was sure he was going to hurl it all when he saw her smile at him, maggots crawling in between her teeth.

"Would you like some my dear?"

"That's digusting," he grimaced, before turning away. She merely shrugged and took another bite. When she had swallowed the foul thing down she looked at him with piercing black eyes, "_It preceded God, it is greater than God, it is more evil than the devil. The poor have it, the rich need it. Should you consume it, you shall die._"

"Che…you've got to be kidding me!" Lovino crossed his arms.

The doll looked somewhat disappointed, "Giving up already? I'll give you a hint if you wish."

He glared at it, wishing that he could somehow burn her head through with the force of his eyes alone. He was sad to say that this didn't exactly work out. "I don't need your damn handouts. The answer's 'nothing'."

She leaned forward, leaning on her hands and raised an eyebrow at him, "Such a rapid response. Is that your final answer?" He didn't deign her with a reply, only crossing his arms and glaring right back at her. "Correct," she said, absently pouring herself a cup of not-tea. "You know you're not very fun. What's the point of a game if you can't enjoy it in the company of friends?"

"We're not friends. I don't have all day, so just go to the next fucking riddle and we can get this over with!" She smiled indulgently at him and sipped her tea. Bitch was deliberately dragging this out.

"Hmm, traditionally, you're supposed to come up with another riddle in return. Don't be rude now, go on."

He only spoke when she slammed her fist onto the table, nearly breaking it in two with the force of the blow. "F-fine! Fine!" he stuttered, wracking his brain for anything that could work. For once, he was actually thankful that Michelle and Feliks were such riddle freaks. "Uh…" he cleared his throat, "_You hear me before, yet you hear me again. Then I die, until you call me again." _

"Eloquently said!" she praised, "An echo, I do believe. But do try to bring something more challenging okay?" He grunted in response. She took another sip from her cup before continuing to speak, "_In marble halls as white as milk, lined with skin as soft as silk, within a fountain crystal clear, a golden apple doth appear. No doors are there to this stronghold, yet thieves break in to steal its gold."_

"Sheesh, can't you be more creative and choose something a little less obvious?" he bluffed. She only smiled, eyes narrowing into slits and her grin spreading so far and so thin that it was like something had cut her head in half. The awful lighting didn't do any better to alleviate the nervousness and fear in his gut. He frantically recalled every riddle he'd been told. Usually the things that were in these riddles were some of the simplest things, despite the ominous and unnecessary adjectives. He took another moment, fiddling with his thumbs before saying carefully, "An….egg?"

She nodded, the smile growing even wider, "Correct." He didn't like this. It was all too easy, and she was too smug about all this, if her terrifying visage was anything to go by. "Your turn, go on my darling."

The endearment sounded foreign to him, yet familiar at the same time. _Whatever you say, mi querido! _He shuddered and tried to erase that particular connection from his mind, before coming up with the only other riddle he had bothered to remember,"_If you break me, I do not stop working. If you touch me, I may be snared. If you lose me nothing will matter._" Strangely enough, Lukas had told him that one during one of the little games Michelle and Feliks would play that he was forced to watch.

"The human heart. So fickle isn't it? Yet so durable." She had pushed away the food, content with just outright staring at him up and down. "I have one final riddle for you…" Thank goodness, he was starting to run out of riddles. "What lies beyond that door?" she said, still smiling cruelly while pointing to the door beyond that led to the altar. "Is it Antonio? Is he there? Or is something else waiting for you?"

"What kind of fucking riddle is that?" he snapped, "Do you really expect me to guess that? This isn't a fucking riddle, it's a just an impossible question!"

"Tick-tock…tick-tock…time is running out. I'll give you three tries. Or have you already given up?" she asked, mixing her tea smugly.

"This isn't fair, they have to be riddles and this isn't a riddle!"

She smiled, tapping the table, "Say what you will, but the longer you wait, the longer you will be trapped here. How many hours have passed? Has it been days already? I can't quite say that time runs normally in this place. Perhaps that man is already dead…"

"Shut up!"

"Then answer the question! By all means, _I'm_ not the one keeping you here, it's your own hesitance now, isn't it, _mi amorcito?_" she taunted. "Unless you wish to stay?"

"Of course not! Just…just give me a second…" He knew she wasn't going to play fair, but seriously? He was seething. And scared. What was he supposed to do, blindly guess? And the way she phrased the question made it sound as if Antonio wasn't even there. It had been a 50-50 guess to begin with, but he swore to God that if Antonio wasn't there he would kill the man next time he saw him. "An empty altar room?"

"No. Two more tries dearest," she said, eyeing him like a piece of meat.

He snarled at her before crossing his arms and trying to think again. Maybe Antonio was there after all? "Is it Antonio?"

She shook her head, before tapping the table's surface with her long, manicured nails. Her hand seemed spiderlike, as he watched it tap away and skitter across the table, the only sign of her impatience. Taking a look around, he noticed that the group of dolls that had surrounded him were now much closer. They formed a ring around him and the bitch, making escape impossible. If Antonio wasn't there, and the room wasn't empty, then who the hell was it? He was shaking. And if she said no, did that mean the altar room was not empty or that there was no altar room beyond and their schematics were entirely wrong? He couldn't die here….he couldn't just fucking die here! It was in that moment that a familiar breeze fell over him. For a moment, he saw the horse demon again and watched as it pointed at him, or more specifically, his pocket. Then it disappeared, that strange laughter ringing in his ears. He curled his fists. It had to be mocking him. But then, he began to feel a foreign weight in his pocket. He slipped a hand in and felt something round and from what he could tell, fresh. A seed. A fucking seed.

How was that supposed to help him again? Someway somehow, the seed managed to communicate its thoughts to him, even though it was supposed to have the mental capacity of a baby. '_Grow. Grow. I want to be free. Send me out so I may grow!' _was what it seemed to say.

"Hmm? What are you up to now? Do you have your answer?" Ermelinda asked, putting down her tea and narrowing her eyes at him.

"Heh, here's my goddamn answer. It's…it's Nicnevin," he said with false confidence. His eyes glanced shifted to the seed in his clenched fist. He wondered if it would hurt for either of them if he actually did manage to do it. Growing too fast was painful after all.

He looked back up at her when she clapped. She was watching him, eyes glittering with amusement. "So close, but alas no. I suppose you're only half-right, but that's not the whole truth. That means I win. You're mine now~!"

All the dolls surged forward, but the Italian wasted no time. Just as Ermelinda lunged at him from across the table, he threw the seed at her face and concentrated. It seemed as if everything was moving in slow motion and the moment it hit her face, it exploded. Seriously, it was like he blew some miniature cannon into her face! But it didn't blow apart into metal shards; it exploded into a swarm of fast-growing vines, buds copiously decorating each one. The sudden burst had thrown everyone, even him, back a few feet. Willing them to grow even faster, Lovino watched as the vines and leaves pushed past him and encircled him protectively. Despite how exhausted he was, he managed to speak. "I don't belong to anyone bitch."

He didn't get to enjoy the surprised look on her face for long, as he ended up falling down to his knees. He felt so…drained. He had never used so much power in one setting before, so it wasn't all too surprising. But damn, did he need that adrenaline rush that a lot of people talked about. He couldn't hold out any longer, he couldn't keep going like this.

"Stop…" he said weakly, growing more and more tired as the seed continued to grow. "Stop it…" Flowers blossomed and leaves unfurled. It did not stop. "Stop it…STOP ALREADY!" he screamed with all his strength and finally, it did as it was told. Lovino dropped to the ground, breathing heavily as he tried to stay conscious. After a few minutes of erratic breathing, he pushed himself slowly to his feet. Looking around, he found that all the dolls in the vicinity had either been crushed or entangled in the mess. God he had never been so happy. He would have whooped in victory, if he had not remembered two certain sprites. "Shit…Anri!...Feliks! Where-?"

He was harshly interrupted when something kicked him straight in the gut. He gasped and had to hold back tears of pain that pooled in the corners of his eyes. He curled up and held his stomach for a second before looking up at his assailant. "Awww, did I hurt you?" Ermelinda said in that disgustingly fake voice of hers, "I was going to let you live you know. You would have made a fine doll." He shivered at the thought. "But I guess I'll just go with Plan B." She smiled dementedly and pulled out a highly decorative rapier. He would have waved that thing away as far too ostentatious to be useful until she ripped apart the plant as if it were made of butter. "I've been waiting for a new, young soul to come by like yours, I'm absolutely starving!"

He backed away, only to hit the door that was pretty much un-openable at the moment. Fuck. His mouth went dry as she walked towards him, a menacing smile on her face. '_Did she ever frown?' _he idly thought to himself. He edged slowly away from her, trying to get to the door. "I'll just be…going!" he said, as he made a dash for the door.

"Ah, ah, I won't let you~!" She said vindictively as she grabbed a chain and looped it around the poor brunet's leg, effectively tripping him. Then she began dragging the horrified Italian over to her.

"Shit, shit, shit…Get the fuck away from me!" But even he could hear how pitiful his voice sounded. "Let me the fuck go you crazy bitch!" He clawed at the floor desperately trying to find anything that would stop this.

"Come here dearest! I'll make it quick, and I'll savor you right down to your precious eyes!" she crowed crazily.

"AGHH! No…No! No! God, No!"

She cackled and dragged him over even faster at the sound of his screams. When he got close enough, she threw away the chain and pinned him down. She sat down on his chest, straddling him, and squeezed his neck with one, powerful hand. "Just calm down, Lovino! I promise it'll be fast if you relax…AHAHAHAHA! Just stay still! Just stay still!" she said, between her mad giggles. Let it be known there was nothing more terrifying than a demented twelve year old girl doll choking you. She raised her rapier and stabbed it into the ground next to him, "Look, look it's getting closer and closer!" she taunted, dragging the sharp tip over to his face. She pushed his head so he was forced to watch the sharp blade coming toward him with agonizing speed.

"AHHHH! Get the fuck off of me! AGHHH!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, thrashing wildly about in her grip in a futile attempt to get her off. He kicked and screamed and clawed frantically at the hand holding his neck in a near death grip. "Stop it, stop it!" Damn it. Was this the end? And he hadn't even managed to see Antonio…didn't even get to apologize to him or anyone… Black spots swarmed in his vision when she squeezed his neck even tighter to still him.

Stupid Lukas should have told him to prepare better…. His eyes snapped open. He had inadvertently closed them, not wanting to see what happened next. Dagger…the fucking dagger! He took one hand off and reached for the dagger still clasped to his belt. Just as the rapier had begun to slice his cheek, he ripped it out of its scabbard.

"I said, GET OFF ME YOU BITCH!" And he stabbed her in the eye. The following scream was deafening. She threw aside the rapier in favor of clutching the hole where her eye once was, trying to stem the flow of black liquid pouring out by the buckets. With strength he didn't know he had, he pushed her off and made a wild dash for the door.

"AGHHHHHHH! AGHH! AHHHHHHHH! MY EYE! MY EYE!" she howled, clutching at it and searching for the rapier she had thrown away. "**B**r**A**t! **B**as**TAR**d **C**hi**LD**! **i'L**l k**iL**L **yOU!** i'**LL** F**U**c**K**i**NG** ki**LL** **y**O**U**!"

Lovino wasted no breath in responding as he pounded hysterically at the door. "Open up, damn you! Open up!"

"L**O**o**Vi**N**O**oO**o**!" she howled. He turned to see her, chains rattling behind her ominously. "Y**o**U **D**O**n'**T d**eS**E**rV**e t**O** **d**iE **Qui**Et**L**y! I**'**l**L** d**iG** O**u**T y**OUr** **Ey**Es a**N**d f**EEd** T**h**E**m** **tO** **t**H**e** C**rO**W**s!** I'**Ll** **bU**rN Y**oU**r **Ar**m**S** an**D** l**Eg**S aW**aY** A**N**d **i**'Ll **PE**el **tH**AT **vI**LE fa**C**e O**f**F y**O**U**r** Go**D**Da**mNE**d s**KU**ll!" she ranted, screaming in frustration as she still could not find her fallen weapon.

Pounding even more feverishly, he pulled out the dagger, hoping to God that it would do something. He tried to cut the chains, sawing at them as she drew nearer. He turned around again to see her charge at him. He wasn't even sure if he would be able to dodge in time without being impaled by the chains that surrounded her whipped around her like a metal monster of a hurricane. He held up her dagger, closing his eyes against his untimely demise.

...

* * *

...

Nicnevin, the Queen of Elphame, sat in the drawing room. She swirled the wine in her glass as she gazed into her crystal ball. She chuckled when she saw the little witch gouge out her doll master's eye. This is why she chose Lovino. He always managed to keep her entertained, if only he could be a bit more obedient, then maybe she would have let him live. Although she did feel a pang of regret as she watched her enraged Antoinette rip out her little boy's heart. She flicked the scene. Antoinette wasn't very tasteful in her sacrifices and they were often quite ugly rather than beautiful. She made a mental note to better discipline the doll master later.

She watched in amusement as the other sprites ran from the wrecking ball, only to fall into the dark below. She chuckled again when she saw the pirate search hopelessly for them, calling out almost desperately, pain written on his face. Then she watched as he panicked, running about in a scramble to recover the one he loved, swinging that halberd left and right. She licked her lips, the despair was absolutely delicious. Perhaps when Antonio had given up she would offer him Lovino's head, just to see his reaction. Ah well, that could wait. She shut off her crystal ball, allowing the light to die off.

"Orobas!" And with a snap, her faithful butler appeared.

He bowed deeply to her, "My lady, what is it that you desire?"

"Bring me my robe and call the servants, I must get dressed for the ceremony tonight. And do bring me another toy, this one has become quite run down," she said, gesturing disdainfully to the small corpse sitting in the corner.

"Of course my lady," said the demon and without looking up, he snapped his fingers and a young girl took the corpse's place.

"Ah, that's better. Draw me a bath and make this place ready for the ceremony. When you are done, bring our guest to my room," she smiled darkly at the last command and turned to face the window.

"It shall be done, my lady," the demon butler said and he disappeared.

Orobas trotted down the halls, ordering the servants to go about their duties. A shame that so many children wandered through this forest. Many believed entering was a rite of passage, but few returned, serving the mistress with their life. Ah well, that would change soon enough. At the moment his mistress suspected nothing, and he knew he didn't have much time left before he was discovered. He had best move quickly lest things go awry.

"S-sir, it is d-done," a young girl said, bowing low before him without looking up as she spoke.

"Excellent. Now go draw the mistress' bath. Wait there for her instruction." The girl trembled violently at the order, knowing full well how few servants had left unscathed after being under her care.

"B-but-"

"Unless you value your life, you shall do as you are told," the butler continued indifferently. The girl's shoulders slumped forward in defeat. Without another word, she trudged away, looking as if she had just been sentenced to death. Which in some ways the demon supposed she had. He pitied the girl, but he had no time for human emotions. Not today. He began to wonder if he had made the right decision in coming to the human world. A century ago he would have felt nothing for the pitiful children here, he would not feel the desire to be freed from his conjurer, nor would he seek the aid of a mortal.

Humans. They had always fascinated him. How could they live such a contradictory existence? It was strange; they were strange. But they were also strangely endearing. His fellow demons may have been correct when they called him a fool for wishing to enter the realm of man. _Enter and you shall never return as a whole._

He supposed that was true. Already he was feeling the taint of human emotion. _We're persistent motherfuckers and no matter how many times you try to tell us wrong…we'll just keep going full steam ahead! _

But perhaps being human was not so bad after all. "Lovino Vargas. Will you create a miracle? Or will you fail to get what matters in the end?" He turned away from the sleeping witch on the ground but before he left he said one more thing, "I do hope your luck does not run out young witch, I can only help you so much," and with that he closed and locked the door.

* * *

**Poor Lovi. Sorry, not sorry guys. I hope this was a satisfactory chapter for you, my lovely readers! Thanks to those who have favorited/reviewed/followed this story and are still sticking around to read it! And I take back what I said. This is going to be bit longer than 2-3, but I plan on wrapping this arc soon. SO FEAR NOT! **


	9. The Demon of the Mirror

**I realize that this is late but my muse decided to dump me. And I really wanted to include this in some way. And this was actually supposed to be a chapter with some...you know, downtime but this happened. And it's not going to stop. Probably. **

**Please bear with me. This chapter did not want to be written and it may seem like some people in here are OC. Which they probably are. Which means I have to rewrite this later. Fudgesickles. But what the hell, I spent the entire week and then some on this and I'm happy with it. Till you guys complain about it. Which you probably will. Double fudgesickles. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own APH! **

* * *

**Chapter 8: The Demon of the Mirror **

Antonio ran about left and right. He ignored everything and everyone in favor of cutting down all that happened to get in his way. He barely registered the sound of Michelle, the young girl er- sprite screaming directions at him. It was then that his world began to clear up and that barrier that separated him from the reality of the situation cracked. He finally stopped and looked around; thinking about what he was doing rather than continuing to run blindly and impulsively into the situation.

He was currently running into a place of which he knew nothing about, with a weapon with which he had little experience, and trying to track down a man whom he wasn't sure where, and then attempting to also track down and murder a woman whose whereabouts he also didn't know and whose abilities he had yet to find out. God was he becoming stupid? Or was that just a trait he picked up from staying away from the sea for so long? Being out in the open ocean would never have allowed him to make such a foolish mistake. A single lapse in concentration, one impulsive act like this, would have him dead.

So he stopped and he waited. Watching almost indifferently as the other three caught up. Perhaps it was the situation that was doing this to him. After all, it isn't every day that you meet mystical beings and be trapped by said mystical being only to be rescued by several others and be plunged into a world that he rarely was in contact with let alone knew even existed. He patted himself on the back, knowing he had taken everything rather well despite the circumstances. Then again he wasn't exactly what some people would call normal, so he supposed that may have had something to do with it.

Michelle, the…rosemary, he thought, ran over and was panting, bending over and leaning on her knees to catch her breath. "God, you run way…too…fast…" Her words were disconnected as she kept on huffing and puffing about as she did. "Annie, you can't go running off like that you know. You're upset, we all are! But…but ya don't even…you don't even know where you're going!" she scolded between breaths. She tried to stand up straight, hands on her hips in what seemed to be an imitation of Anri but failed as she ended up leaning on a nearby column.

"Shit…these…hallways…are too damn long," Abel got out, as he came jogging over, eventually coming to a stop. He was also out of breath, but Antonio seriously underestimated him as the sprite actually made to punch him right in the jaw. His head jerked back at the blow, but he had already bent backwards slightly to lessen the pain. It still hurt, but at least it didn't leave that much of a bruise. Or take out one of his teeth for that matter. "Bastard, that's…that's for running off…and this one's for…" He tried to take another swing, but the pirate caught his hand and pushed him away.

Antonio levelled him with a stony glare, "As guilty as I am for bringing this all upon us, I'd like to say that hitting me isn't going to change things. I can't…I can't stay idle, knowing that he's in danger. So…Michelle, where do we go from here?"

She seemed startled by how serious he sounded. No amused lilt or playful tone, his voice was decidedly grim. "Uh, well…" She turned to Abel, her voice sounding unsure, "I think that Abel has the-?"

"I have it!" Govert yelled, running over and simply flopping down onto the ground from fatigue. "God, you run so fast. I swear you could give Cici a run for his money, I mean, how can a human move so quickly?"

"The map. Get the goddamn map out," the annoyed aconite said, dragging him up by the armpits.

"Alright, alright, I'll read it. No need to get fussy again, why don't we put that frown upside-" A quick slap to the head finally made the sprite stop rambling. "Let's see…Cici was headed towards the altar, so the fastest way to the altar is…" he gulped, "Through that door…" They all shuddered at the thought of _another_ horse screaming and _another_ gigantic ball chasing them down the halls.

"What's the next-…Dammit, where the hell do you think you're going?" Abel said, calling out to the pirate. Antonio, peering over the map, knew where to go and just ran off. He knew the way, so what was the hold up? As he sprinted down the halls, making a number of twists and turns that would make any other person dizzy, he vaguely noted that he wasn't tired. A halberd this size should have been fairly heavy, even for him and he shouldn't be able to run about so quickly as to pass the remarkable sprites. But he brushed it off as he stood in front of a small door. It was barely his height and it had a golden knocker and golden handle inscribed with a seal he couldn't recognize. It was strange, because it was the only thing that was left standing in the room. The halls past him were destroyed, stripped of any décor, even the paint was scraped off. The wall that the door was supposed to be attached to was gone, leaving only said door standing. He tried to go around the door and through the ruins, but he was always pushed back by some invisible force.

"Wait, don't open that door!"

"Get away from there you dumbass!"

"Annie! Wait up!"

He didn't listen to any of their cries and tried to open the door. But he quickly backed away when he saw a horse's head melt down from the door. It opened its eyes, scrutinizing him before huffing impatiently, "So you've finally decided to come. Hurry along now, we're behind schedule." And he swung open for the pirate and his companions. "Go on now, we can't keep him waiting." He sank into the door and disappeared in a flash of gold.

Govert eyed the door suspiciously, "So he wouldn't let us in because we didn't have you with us?"

"Seems so. Guess that bastard is the key. Let's just hope that he hasn't triggered anything else along the way," Abel said darkly, he then kicked the door and tensed for it to come to life. Nothing happened. "I don't like any of this, there are other places we can go."

Antonio pushed past him, frustrated, "We don't have time for this. Lovino needs our help now!" And he broke into another sprint down the halls. Michelle yelled as she ran with him, trying in vain to catch up, Govert following along.

So they all went running running at a rather comfortable pace in a perfectly straight line, with Govert screaming directions every now and then. God, were there ever any guards sitting around here? They ran along quickly, but it still took them quite a while before they actually reached the door they were searching for. And even with the map, they had to break walls, make marks all around the halls to remember where they came from as all the hallways appeared the same. "So is this it?" Antonio asked, slightly out of breath for once along with the rest of them.

"Yeah…yeah…just…give…me…a…second…" Govert panted heavily, slowly pulling out the map from one of his many, bottomless coat pockets, "Here we go, erm…yes! Down here then take a left and up the staircase. After that, take another left and then the first door on the right!"

Antonio nodded, quickly filing the information as they all knew he would break into another sprinting match. Standing before this door, he noticed it was much more different than the other, flimsy wooden ones. This one was a double door entrance, twice as large as him and three times as wide. It was covered in golden vines and midnight roses, not a good sign as far as Antonio remembered. "Well, this will be good," he muttered to himself grimly, before pushing open the door. And did he mention the door was ridiculously heavy? Because it was. All three sprites had to help him and the movement was still painfully slow.

"Holy hollies…" Michelle said in awe when they entered.

The room was covered in mirrors. Antonio touched one of them, watching in fascination as the area he touched dissipated in waves across the glass. He stepped forward a few feet, before smacking straight into the glass.

"Oi, idiot, how the hell do we get through here?" Abel said gruffly, pushing the ivy sprite forward. "This is your job."

"Oh uh, gimme a sec," he dug about his coat before pulling out a strange rod. He pressed some sort of button, making the pen emit a strange red light. The light refracted across the halls but continued its movement off to the right rather than reflecting back at them. A clear path. "Haha! Govert is here to save the day again!" the ivy sprite boasted happily. Michelle clapped appropriately.

"What is it?" Antonio asked, putting a hand through the light.

"A laser! I got it from some dude wandering around the place! He was dressed in these funny looking clothes that said 'America'. He looked all lost and kept asking where England was. Something about magic spells and stuff, but he disappeared right after that and left this. Funny right?"

"Don't care. Let's go, time is money," Abel said, pushing past them to take point. "Are you coming or not, saplings?"

"Yessir!" Michelle and Govert said, saluting like proper marines before marching off to follow. Antonio chuckled quietly behind them. Things never really got boring around these people did they? It was just like his Lovi… It hurt to think about the younger brunet now. As they walked through this maze of mirrors, he was unable to see anything but himself. And he was filled with self-loathing. Why had he let this happen? His hands shook, and he gripped the weapon in his hand so tightly his knuckles turned completely white.

"Alrighty, so uh which way do you think we should go Antonio?" Govert inquired, pointing at two separate doorways. Unlike before, where they couldn't tell where they should even step, the fork here had two clearly defined passages. Definitely suspicious. "Left or right? Left or right?" he muttered.

Michelle raised her hand to speak, "Oh, oh! Let's vote!"

"You're not in charge," Abel deadpanned, shooting them down immediately, "I don't trust you idiots to make rational decisions on your own."

"I don't see why not, it's not like it can hurt. Both of them look exactly the same," Antonio pointed out. Abel huffed.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean they end the same. If there's a fork in the road here that means only one is the exit, the other is probably a death trap."

Govert swung about his pointer, shining it in both openings. He blinked, "Wow, even the trajectory is the same. Look!" He swung it about the tunnel, but no matter where he pointed it, the light would bend at the same spots as the other. "So uh…which way are we gonna go?"

Antonio walked over, inspecting each one. They seemed exactly the same…until he saw it. A figure at the end of the left tunnel. It had the body of a man, devoid of clothing and on its back were great, black wings. The thing turned and instead of a man's head, it was that of an owl's. The thing screeched at him before quickly disappearing in a flash of feathers. The Spaniard jumped back, heart pumping at what he had seen. "Right," he said quickly, "Right would be best." But unbeknownst to the pirate, the aconite sprite had seen the exact same image, except he had seen the figure appear on the right instead of the left.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Abel cut in, his face pale. "I don't think so. Unless you're planning on getting us killed we're not going down there."

Of course, Antonio was startled the sprite would suggest such a thing, "But didn't you see that thing? It was on the left you know," the pirate said as politely as possible.

"Are you blind? It was on the right you idiot," the aconite swept his hand towards the left, "That way's our best bet."

"Then you must be bad at gambling then," Antonio said lightly, his patience wearing thin, "We're going right."

"No, we're going left."

Sparks flew between them as they began glaring at each other. Or you know, Antonio smiling as creepily as possible while Abel sent out waves of his discontent.

The other two decided to intervene. Michelle stood before the pirate, "Hey, hey, maybe we can work this out yeah? No need to argue here. We've got to find Cici 'member?"

Antonio backed down a bit, sighing, "I know what I saw."

The brunette patted him on the shoulder, "Maybe it was just a trick of the light? I mean all of us are tired and all. Why don't me and Govert look for y'all?"

"Ah, I don't think you should…and she goes." He sighed as Michelle waltzed over to the passageways anyways. She looked into the right and into the left, communicating to him from afar with exaggerated gestures. She came back shrugging her shoulders. She rambled on and on about a trick of the light and fatigue. It's been a long day, she said. She patted him on the shoulder again, trying to comfort him when he seemed unconvinced and offered him some tea leaves. Something about Buddhists cutting their eyelids and making it good for staying awake. He politely declined letting Michelle continue to ramble on about eyelids and such. But somehow, over her voice, he heard it.

"_Why are do you even care about what he has to say?," _the aconite said, his voice drifting over, _"He's a bastard who got us all into this mess. If that guy had just stayed at sea where he belongs we wouldn't be here in the first place," _The Spaniard's eyes flared. That had hit a nerve.

"I'm doing all I can…I didn't ask for this, I didn't ask to be shipwrecked…!" The rosemary, more confused than ever at the pirate's odd statement tried to hold the angry man back. In the farthest corners of the room, cracks began to form, allowing tiny tendrils of black smoke to seep inside.

Likewise, Govert tried to placate Abel, "Hey, come on I'm sure there's been some sort of mistake…"

The very insinuation that he was getting old and seeing things sent more waves of anger from the sprite. It was enough to make the red-eyed sprite squeak. "C'mon! How could you two see it but we can't?! Don't need to get your bottoms in a knot!" To reassure him, Govert walked over to the tunnels, pointing his laser in both before returning. Nothing, he said. Maybe they were being messed with? It wasn't the first time a demon strayed too far from home. Shouldn't let it get to their heads. Nevertheless, a voice whispered in the aconite's ears…

"_The only mistake here is letting him lead this entire time. Who was the one who messed up and let Lovino out of his sight? I wouldn't trust him with my life," _said the pirate, his words ringing in the blonde sprite's ears.

Abel growled, "I'm the one who let Cici go? I was protecting him. I always have been; I didn't just let him go…" Govert yelped at the angry sprite. What was he even talking about? He clung to the blonde male's legs, hoping that would stop him from charging. The cracks began to grow larger, and the room grew imperceptibly darker with more and more of the dreaded fog sinking in.

Antonio gritted his teeth when the voice rose. Michelle grew more frightened as the Spaniard's eyes began to darken, his eyes losing their normal green color. _"'I have to save Cici?' What a joke. He couldn't save anyone. Hell, he can't even save himself. Lovino doesn't need this bastard." _

On the other side, Abel was struggling to keep from smashing the mirrors he was standing on. Govert tried to calm him down, growing more nervous as the sprite's normally blue eyes began to darken. _"He just led Lovino into this and didn't even bother to keep watch over him? Despicable. It'd be better if I took care of things now, so he doesn't mess up again."_

"Hey, no one's saying any of that…"

"I didn't hear nothing, why are you upset?"

"Oi, don't go running off! Hey, don't we have other things to worry about? Like Cici? H-ello?"

"N-now let's not be hasty yeah? A good fight helps the blood but this ain't the time and place!"

Despite their respective shackles, the two men walked up to each other, glaring daggers at the other. At this point, their eyes were dark, almost black. Those words, along with scornful laughter, echoed through their ears.

Govert attempted to laugh, but it came out hesitant and awkward, "C'mon guys this is all just one big misunderstanding isn't-"

"No it isn't," Abel growled, "I was doing this for Cici…but now, it's obvious this was a mistake. I should have just left you to rot." The amount of venom in his voice would have made any lesser man flinch, but Antonio was not one to back down.

"Hah, doing this for Lovino that's rich. You just takeover and dictate his life. You don't care about what he thinks, you don't care what anyone thinks. It always has to be your way doesn't it?" Antonio hissed back.

The sprite jabbed a finger at the pirate's chest, "Bastard, I've always—I've always watched him, taken care of him, protected him! Everything I've done has been for his sake!"

The pirate shoved back, shouting, "Really? Because all I see is a fool who thinks that trapping someone in a cage is what will make them happy!"

"I don't have to justify myself to you," he snarled, "You would never understand what it means to raise a kid! With me he's-"

"Suffocating?" Antonio interrupted, mocking, "Trapped? Lonely? Face it, your smothering him isn't getting him anywhere! He's not a kid!"

"He is if he's too stupid to see a bastard when he sees one!" Abel cracked his knuckles, "I won't let you touch him…I won't let you drag him down with you!"

The pirate unslung his halberd, "I'm not dragging him down…I'm saving him from you!"

The sprite sneered, "Save him? Don't make me laugh. You can't even save yourself." Antonio surged forward, but Michelle stood in his way. Likewise, Govert pushed the taller sprite back.

"Guys, guys wait a second-" Govert said, eyes darting frantically between the two, "C'mon we can work this out-"

Michelle stomped her foot, "We don't have time for this! Why don't we leave it and go-"

Antonio pushed her aside, "I don't know if you've forgotten, but I saved your sorry ass back there. It was for Lovino's sake but maybe I should have left you! It would have saved him from having to deal with a possessive asshole like you!"

"If I wasn't here, he'd be fucked around with by shitheads like you!" Abel yelled back, surging past the ivy sprite. "You manipulate him, befuddle him! I'm not gonna let you toy with him anymore you fucker!"

"Is that what you think I've been doing?" Antonio laughed bitterly, "You know what I think? You're just scared that Lovino wants to leave you behind. Now that I'm here, he realizes there's something better than sitting around with a bitter, old bastard!"

Abel charged at him, fists ablaze. "He was just fine until you showed up!" he yelled between punches, becoming more frustrated as the pirate continued to dodge and block him.

"No – he wasn't!" Antonio stuck out a leg, trying to trip up the sprite.

Instead the aconite smashed his fist into the ground, nearly obliterating the pirate's leg. Abel rolled away quickly to avoid a heavy counter-blow to the head, "Don't talk like you know anything about him, you conniving little shit!"

"You're the one who doesn't know anything, _pendejo!*_" The pirate ducked just in time to avoid getting his head kicked off.

With another enraged yell, the aconite tackled the human, pinning him down. "I'm going to enjoy this," he said, lips curled in grim smile as he raised his fist to punch the pirate straight across the face. But before he could get another punch in, the pirate headbutted him and rolled them both over.

The Spaniard grabbed his scarf, knotting it around his neck and keeping a leg pressed against his chest. He began to choke him with the fabric. "I wonder, is it true that bastards croak faster than others?" he said, a vindictive smile on his face as he pulled the scarf tighter. Then the sprite rolled again, kicking off the pirate in the process.

The two got up, panting and spitting out blood and saliva. The younger sprites grabbed each man by the arm, trying to calm them down.

"I'm sure he didn't mean it! Right? This is all one big funny joke, ahahaha…" / "See? We've settled things with a punch and stuff yeah? Don't have to go farther now!"

They were easily pushed aside. And the two charged each other again. Neither of them advanced nor retreated. They simply continued to attack each other, being met with equal resistance in each punch and kick, in each slash and stab. Their eyes were now completely black as they fought each other without a single break. They would have kept brawling if not for the earsplitting sound of shattering glass. They stopped cold and looked around them. Each mirror had its own set of spider web cracks. The floor, the wall, the ceiling, it was like one horrific kaleidoscope. The cracks grew bigger and bigger, the sound grew louder and louder.

And soon, they all just…broke. From the gaping holes, black smoke swept inside, covering them, suffocating them. The world shook and the room turned upside down. The last thing anyone saw was the demon of discord, staring down at them with beady, black eyes, its laughter ringing through their ears.

…

* * *

…

When Abel woke up, he thought he was dead. And then he realized that hell wouldn't be so nice as to leave him be like this. He forced himself onto his feet and dusted himself off, trying to reorient himself. This was a difficult thing to do when it's so dark, you can't even see your own two hands. Hell, he couldn't see anything but black. But…being a sprite, he supposed it wouldn't be too much of a deal to move out on his own with the other three senses. That's right three. Because he highly doubted that taste would be at all useful here.

Spreading his arms out like a blind man and then hobbling like a newborn, he set out to find the others. It seemed endless. Or it had seemed endless until he bumped into a wall. He would have hugged the wall in an attempt to orient himself if it wasn't for the smell. It was absolutely rancid, a scent similar to that of rotting meat. And the wall was sticky too, pulling away he felt pieces of some gooey substance sticking itself in-between his fingers. It dried quickly, leaving an uncomfortable stiffness on his hands. As much as he would have loved to back away from this, he didn't want to be forced to walk in the dark completely blind.

Walking on, his nose became numb to the smell and he managed to force himself to touch that wall again. Despite it being horrifyingly disgusting, at least he didn't feel completely lost. And he was moving faster this way too. Which probably wasn't a good thing, seeing how he tripped a few minutes later.

"Owie! Uhhhhh…five more minutes…"

"Get up," he said, tapping her gently with his foot. When Michelle started snoring he kicked her lightly. Or at least in his mind, that was how it was.

She shrieked and rolled over spluttering. "Wh-What? Aliens! Oh mama, I've gone blind!" A well-placed smack on the head set her straight and he pulled her up to her feet. Even in the dark his ability to smack idiots was impeccable.

"It's me idiot. And you're not blind, we're just stuck. Now get up and don't let go of my hand, you'll get lost."

There was a pause, but he heard the usual 'Yessir'. It was quieter and more subdued than before. It was funny. How much he complained about how noisy she was. And now, he wanted to complain about how quiet she was being. Once, he had her and Govert play the silent game when he had enough of their chattering. They didn't last for more than two minutes and were immediately kicked out of the house.

He waited for her to say something, anything. But she stayed quiet. He couldn't believe he was doing this.

"What's wrong?" he managed to get out. She squeezed his hand. Judging from the movement she probably shrugged her shoulders and if he knew Michelle, she probably puffed up her cheeks and shook her head. Like she usually did when she wanted to keep a secret. So he picked up the pace, making sure not to lose his grip on the wall and on the rosemary's hand. Damn this wall was long. How long had they been walking? How many minutes had passed? Hours? Days? There was no way to tell where they were or how long they had been out. If anything, Lovino could already be…

He walked faster.

Why had he done that? He was old. Old enough to know that it wasn't like him to fight and to yell like he had. But he did. And it pissed him off to no end that a stupid demon could get the better of him. If there was anything to say in his defense, it would be…well it had hit a nerve. The fucker must have known what he was doing because it really did hurt. So clever, finding little facts and then twisting it around to feed your opponent's fears. Clever bastard. Too bad he realized it too late.

"Hey Abel." The aconite would deny all accounts of him jumping at the noise. "Why d'ya have to be so mean to Annie back there? At the cottage you didn't seem to mind none. Him being with Cici and…" she squeaked when Abel began squeezing her hand in a terrifying death grip. Not on purpose of course. He hadn't realized he was doing it until the female sprite began whining.

When he loosened up she continued, albeit more nervously than before. "I-I mean you know – a-and that's not to say you all wrong and stuff – but maybe it's just, I dunno… maybehe'sgotapointandall?" She said the last part so quickly he could barely catch it. Her grip loosened to the point where she was barely touching the palm of his hand, afraid he would crush it.

Did they really have to talk about this? When he didn't respond, it seemed she thought of that as a go-ahead and keep talking not a I-don't-want-to-talk-silence. Then again she couldn't read the atmosphere very well. And it was probably because she couldn't see his so-called 'scary face'. That usually shut them up fast. But she didn't see it, so she chattered on, "You know Annie ain't that bad. He's a little funny in the head but he's a good guy. Anri thinks so too ya know. So…I dunno…maybe it's not as bad as you think?"

She jumped when he responded, "You weren't there when Lukas told us were you?"

"Uh-"

"Were you there when Cici got taken away?"

"I-"

He tightened his hold on her hand and walked forward faster, "Then you would never understand."

He had expected silence, acceptance of his space and her backing off. But she didn't. "…I know I wasn't there. But that doesn't mean I don't love Cici too. He's my lil bro man…and you're my big bro, so even if ya say I don't get it. I do. I do get it, and I-I don't want *hic* to see Cici go neither…" she hiccupped and he felt her let go of his hand for a second to wipe away the tears. He stopped, waiting for her to finish. Whenever she was upset, her grammar tended to get worse. And like the little grammar troll Feliks was, he would pick on her lots. Not to say that Govert and Abel didn't tease her either. But anyways, she would cry and cry until Cici came up to him and kicked him and everyone else, in the shins. But Cici wasn't here. So it took her a bit longer to compose herself.

He sighed exasperatedly and ran a hand through his hair. Again, why did he have always have to be stuck with the idiot brats? When she finally stopped crying, they moved on. She was brooding. Don't ask how he knew without seeing her face, he just knew. Having to keep an eye on a kid for several decades can do that. Stick you around somebody long enough and you just pick up their ticks, the type of idiot things and idiot plans that go on in their heads. She was annoyed and upset. He was being unfair, he knew that. He wasn't the only one who was worried. So…just this once, he decided to indulge her. "Cici is going to get hurt out there and I can't go where he's going."

She sniffled, "But…but won't he get hurt if you keep him here?"

A pause. For a while, it seemed like he wouldn't answer and the rosemary sprite was just about to drop it. "Lukas said he would suffer. It's not just getting hurt in living life outside."

The girl paused, "What do you mean?"

...

* * *

...

"The great Marquis of Hell and commander of thirty infernal legions, Andras, is the sixty-third demon of the great king Solomon. He appeareth in an angel's shape with head of the night hunter and wings of death. He holds within his grasp the secrets of life everlasting and is author of discords. Woe to the conjurer who doth fail to heed the instructions labeleth in this text for he shalt bring with him all those who appeareth amongst the ill-fated conjurer to the very depths of Hell," Govert finished, closing the grimoire triumphantly. "So to cut things short, the thing you and Abel saw was the demon of discord, Andras. Super dangerous guy with crazy powers."

"So…things went out of hand, because I saw this demon?" Antonio asked, taking the grimoire himself and sifting through it. He stopped when he reached the picture of the discord demon again. The artist really didn't do the thing any justice. The monster was far more intimidating in person, and it looked more cartoonish and almost whimsical compared to the actual thing. Then again…he looked up at the ivy sprite he was trapped with. It only made sense if it was all silly looking if it was Govert being the artist. Apparently, he had once seen the grimoire Nicnevin held. She had given a copy to Lovino, who subsequently burned it the next day. The ivy sprite made a copy but only managed to get through the first part, the Goetia, before the herbalist furiously took back the spellbook and threw it in the fire. He thought pictures would make it less scary and more 'fun' as he put it.

"Basically and well…" He shuffled through his belongings, not wanting to look Antonio in the eye. "You know…you were kinda being a bit of a jerk back there – Not like Abel was perfectly right either!" he said quickly, "But you know, you shouldn't be that harsh on the guy. He's been with Cici longer than anyone er- well Anri too, I mean they've both been around-"

"I get it, Govert. I know I messed up," the pirate said, sighing. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He couldn't believe he had let some demon get the better of him. It pissed him off to no end. He had thought he was a bit stronger than this, but he supposed not. Yes, he didn't like Abel and he had known the sprite hadn't liked him either but…he didn't think the resentment ran _that_ far. His face was still throbbing from that punch. He gripped the book tightly…he knew he shouldn't let it get to him. Hell half of the words said were probably under the influence of a spell, but it still stung a bit. And he had a feeling that Abel had felt this way about him since day one. Taking Lovino with him was going to be a lot harder than he thought.

"Hey, how's your face?" The ivy sprite looked at him in concern, offering him a bandage. "I'm not a doc like Cici, but I think it's looking a little bit better."

He accepted the item gratefully. "Yeah…thanks…" Govert looked at him expectantly, as if waiting for him to say something. Which he probably was.

"So, is Abel usually this-"

"Crazy possessive mother hen?" Govert interjected suddenly. He continued on, as if he had been waiting for permission to rant all day and he was letting it all out, "Yeah he's always been like that - But don't tell him I said that okay? - I don't really think he's mad at you though. I think it's more like he's angry at himself than anything." He spoke slower, as if he was afraid his voice would get stuck, "When Cici – Lovino, got taken away, Abel he – he kind of lost it, we all did. But, he took it worse. Cici… He was screaming. He was crying for help and we couldn't do anything and when he came back…." Govert shook his head, unable to continue.

The pirate didn't respond. He looked back down at the book, still in his hands. He felt the slightest twinges of guilt pulling at him. _Don't talk about him like you know anything! You're the one who doesn't know anything!_ He sighed again. What was this, a bad romance novel? Saying something so cliché and utterly stupid…

Govert went on again, "He's always blaming himself, I think… He just doesn't want to lose Cici again. None of us do." This was probably the most serious Antonio had ever seen the sprite. He seemed like the type who was always there for a laugh and ready to cause trouble. A lot like him actually. But looking at him now, he seemed older, more mature with an odd sort of wisdom beyond the youthfulness his appearance belied. And the pirate began to wonder how old Govert really was, how old they all were.

"But don't ever tell him I told you that he'd probably kill me ahahah..." The sprite said dusting off his little top hat nervously, "The world will explode the day he ever talks about something as unmanly as his feelings and that kind of stuff. Or if he's really drunk. Like really, _really_ drunk. If he knew I told you…"

Antonio shook his head. "My lips are sealed."

The sprite relaxed a bit, before continuing, "He's a jerk yeah. But he really does want to do what's best for Cici."

The pirate stiffened, "Even if that means Lovino himself isn't happy?"

"…Yeah. Yeah, he's kind of a dick about that. But you know…parents, they don't want their kids to go through anything they think is too much for them. Always gotta watch him, protect them, even if they don't need it."

Antonio turned away, gazing into the lantern. "I never wanted to put him through this. Abel or Lovino. If I had known this would happen, believe me when I say I wouldn't have stuck around." He laughed bitterly. "Parents, _cierto_? I must have forgotten what it's like. I don't think I'll ever get it, being sheltered could kill you one day." The sprite had nothing to say to that. He got up, "But protecting the people you love, that's something I can understand."

He paused, looking at the ivy sprite. "So I guess we'd better catch up now and find the people you love." He picked up his halberd, a determined expression on his face. "Think Abel will give me his blessing if I get out and find Lovi first?"

Govert stared at him. And then he shook his head before laughing, "You'd have to move the sun before you even get a chance!"

...

* * *

...

"He's not Piero you know. And he's not that old fart either," Michelle said quietly. "He's a good guy deep down."

Abel pinched the bridge of his nose, "He's arrogant-"

"I'd call that confidence-"

"He's stupid-"

"He's actually a smart cookie-"

"And he's a manipulative little-"

"I think that's called charisma and charm yeah?" The aconite grunted. "C'mon. You have to admit, he's not all bad. He's a weirdo but he's _sincere_. When it comes down to it. Did ya see his face when he heard Cici was in trouble?"

He scoffed. "Oh I'll show you! Ugh let me find a light-" The following smack resounded across the room. "O-ow, what was that for?"

"Idiot, you had a fucking light and you didn't even say anything?"

"Because you didn't ask…" she whined. He face-palmed. He had long ago accepted the fact that saplings were idiots. Give them another decade and maybe…just maybe if they were all lucky, they would finally use that thing in their heads called a brain.

He had to turn away from the little matchstick when she lit it. Being in the dark for so long, it almost burned to see it, even if it was such a weak flame. She then pulled out a vial, filled with black powder, and dropped the thing inside, making it glow a bright greenish color. Seeing what was around them, Abel almost wished they hadn't turned on the light. The walls were lined with flesh. Mashed meat and intestines layered the walls, pulsing and beating as if it were alive. He looked down at his own hands, finding them covered in a sticky yellow fluid, bits of red staining it. Embalming fluid, to keep the corpses from rotting.

Michelle grimaced. "Ick. You would have thunk that Nicnevin would have better taste yeah? I don't think even humans do that…right?"

"You're forgetting that she once was a human," Abel added gravely, "And you're forgetting that bastard's one too."

Michelle frowned and stared into the green light, "But Cici's human too. A special human, but he is." Abel didn't respond, going into another one of his infamous silences. "Antonio's a good guy. If he wasn't, I'm sure big sis would have killed him before he even got to see Cici. He'll take care of him-"

"No he won't. Because if all that's gonna happen to Lovino then he's not doing enough," he growled. "I don't want to hear this, just shut up and focus on what you're doing."

She pushed past and stood in front of him, her hands out to block his way. "No! Now you'd better listen!"

"Get out of my way, brat." But when he tried to get through, she kicked him. In the gut. Hard. Doubling over, he kind of wished now that he hadn't let Anri give her fighting lessons… "It's going to happen anyway! It's all gonna happen and you can't stop it! Tomorrow or today don't matter no more. What you should be worried about is if someone's gonna be there to help him through it!" She sighed, "Annie…Antonio, is strong and he's smart. He has what it takes to make it out there. And I know, you know it too." Abel pushed past her again. She let him. And he walked faster and faster, intent on getting away from the conversation.

She stalked after him as they continued to move forward in the endless darkness, "You can't protect him forever!"

He stopped abruptly, making the girl bump into him. "I can try."

...

* * *

...

"Do you really think this is gonna work?"

Antonio put down his halberd, wiping the sweat from his brow, "It's not like we can do anything else. If we can't find an exit we'll have to make one. Searching is taking too long." He smashed the wall again, sending bits and pieces of unidentifiable meats flying in all sorts of directions. But the pirate paid it no mind; he had done worse things, messier things. He would admit it was…unnerving at first to see the wall beating as if it were a living thing, but if he had time to be afraid he had time to think of a way to escape.

The sprite sighed, "Well, at least cut them into bigger pieces." Antonio gave him a look. "Hey, I might as well get some research samples yeah?" Then Govert got this strange glint in his eyes, "Can you imagine what I can do with all this? My goats are calling to me…" He took out a pair of tongs from nowhere and began picking up the pieces Antonio had been hacking off with disturbing enthusiasm. And everyone thought he was the crazy one.

He shook his head and continued trying to peel off the blubbery flesh glued onto the walls. Ripping away another layer, he found it. And he wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not, because the concrete felt pretty darn solid. He looked down at the halberd, the blade was now dulled from having to cut through so much fleshy material. "Govert, do you have anything in that coat of yours that can get this…_?" _

He trailed off upon seeing the sprite holding a small goat. It bleated weakly and chewed the strawberry blonde's coat. Normal goat behavior. But it was missing any form of fur and skin, exposing for all of the world to see the thin veins and delicate muscles of a young goat. "Way ahead of you!" Govert replied happily, ignoring the pirate's shocked expression while still jotting down notes in his grimoire. Looking up, he pointed to the wall, "I dub thee, Ileana Cosânzeana the Seventeenth! Now use take down!" Antonio barely had time to roll out of the way as the goat charged.

And if you were expecting the goat to miraculously break the wall, he'd beg to differ. No, apparently magic could not defy the fact that this was a solid concrete wall versus several pounds of barely held together meat. Ileana's body splattered all over the hole. Unlike Antonio, who had to turn away from the sight, Govert was completely unaffected, "Aw man, that was supposed to work – Watch out!"

The remains of Ileana began to bubble and the ivy sprite tackled him out of the way just as the wall exploded.

...

….

Abel was silently panicking. Earlier, he had marked the wall with Michelle's paring knife. He had had his suspicions about this place but he had hoped they would be proven wrong. This was not the case. Because it wasn't long before he passed the 'X' spot he had marked on the wall. Again and again, they passed it by, not making any headway at all. He didn't mention this to the brunette walking behind him. She was starting to panic too, if the inane chatter being spewed from her mouth meant anything. He stopped when they passed the 'X' for the fifth time and poked the 'X' again with the knife. The thing throbbed faster, as if sensing his presence. And was that…ticking?

"And Feliks is such a jerk, but Antonio's a nice guy. He's not a priss and stuff…Govert's not a priss either. He's a good guy, and he's funny and he's cool and he's always got funny stuff-"

"Brat."

"What?"

"Shut up." And he cautiously leaned in closer, putting his ear as close as humanely possible without actually touching the thing. _Tick. Tick. Tick. _

It soon grew faster and faster. Like it was counting down to something…

"Duck!" he roared, throwing Michelle to the ground.

He and the rosemary were thrown back several feet, forcing the girl to drop what little light they had in the process. For a while, he couldn't hear anything but a loud ringing in his ears. He tried to get up, and nearly fell back down. He touched his forehead. Judging by the wetness, it was probably bleeding pretty bad, but it was hard to tell with it being pitch black again. Damn it felt deep. Probably would scar.

He patted around in order to find the rosemary who was probably knocked out as well. Squinting in the darkness, he could see a figure running lying on the ground… Wait, he could see? That meant…he turned his head and saw a small light bobbing in the distance. It grew larger and larger with frightening speed. He was vaguely aware of someone calling his name. Who…?

"Holy shit, sorry I-" Abel tuned out, choosing to focus more on trying to put the two Goverts spinning in his face together. "-and that's what happened! I'm sorry!"

The blonde sprite turned to look at no one other than the damned pirate himself. He was patching up Michelle, ripping a piece of his own shirt to tie around her bleeding head with surprising tenderness. He probably should have felt grateful, but all he did was feel annoyed by the fact that the bastard seemed more concerned about the country bumpkin and not the brat. Good for Cici his ass. Their gazes met for a second. The bastard seemed to be having some internal struggle, before settling on an expression of indifference. If anything, that seemed to piss off Abel more than ever.

They ended up ignoring each other as best as they could. Govert continued to explain to them what had happened, although it made little sense. Like he said, give a decade or two and the sprite would ease up. For now he was going to have figure out what the hell Ileana and exploding goats meant. "So uh, guess we didn't really find an exit did we?" Govert said sheepishly, "But at least we found each other!"

"Like that helps anyone," the aconite grumbled. He straightened up, touching the cut on his forehead, struggling slightly to find the info he wanted. "This…this hallway is endless. We're trapped in an infinite loop." They all stared at him expectantly to continue. "Damn it, didn't you saplings listen when I was teaching?"

"Nope!"/ "Nuh-uh."

He sighed, massaging his forehead again. "We're trapped in a space cut off from reality. We're in the demon's domain now and we're pretty much fucked unless we can find the linchpin that's powering this place." They all continued to give him blank looks. He face-palmed. Idiots. "Get rid of bad thing helping bad guy and we escape." They all gave sounds of comprehension, nodding their heads enthusiastically. Idiots.

Then the rosemary groaned, "Ughhh, what does it even look like?"

Abel looked at Govert. The sprite dug through his pockets to produce his grimoire, "Well, it doesn't even have to be an item. It can be anything from a key word or action of the occupants." By the dismayed looks he added quickly, "But uh, in here it usually has to something to do with the demon's own attributes so…hoot like owls I guess?"

The Spaniard made an odd coughing sound and Abel face-palmed. For a while, they toyed with a few suggestions although they mainly came from Michelle and Govert. Antonio stayed silent, preferring to watch the others and Abel chose to sit there and smoke his pipe. He had finally gotten a light from Govert. Damn had he needed that. Things were shitty, but they were now slightly less shitty. He couldn't get stoned, but it helped him relax just a little bit. Listening to their half-baked plans, he ended up watching the pirate instead. The man was sitting cross-legged, like the rest of them. He was polishing the halberd he stole earlier, and he actually looked like he was thinking about something.

He snorted. As if. Bastard was probably thinking about disgusting things. About Cici. The malevolent aura seeping out of him made the saplings falter a bit. But it surprised him when the pirate came up with something that actually made more sense than the brats. "This _diablo_ is the author of discord yes? So maybe if we smooth things over, then we could get out?" Everyone gave Abel a meaningful look at that.

"That could work…" the ivy sprite said hesitantly, sneaking glances at him. Damn it. He needed a lot more matches if he was going to go through this. The following silence was very, very uncomfortable, everyone looked at the ground, as if searching for some other solution there. Abel cleared his throat. Antonio shuffled his feet.

Michelle, not at all reading the atmosphere, said loudly, "Well? Give each other a good man-hug! C'mon, time's a wasting!" If there was anything Abel would agree on with the pirate bastard, it was that he would rather die, than hug. "Get moving sissies! Cici is in trouble remember?"

Even with that, Abel had to force himself to get up. The two walked stiffly towards each other. The tension suddenly becoming quite heavy as their glaring practically caused sparks. The other two stared at the two men nervously turning dead quiet. Even the soft beating from the walls stopped for a minute. _This is for Cici, this is for Cici._ He repeated over and over again in his head. For his kid, he forced himself to bite down his pride.

He stuck out his hand, "Truce?"

Antonio took it, "Truce."

The words were quite hollow, seeing as they were practically digging into each other's palms. The glaring never stopped. Common goals didn't always mean friendship. But their fighting would only cause that goal to be set back, so they'd form a truce for now. It probably wasn't the best solution, considering all that had been said, and it wasn't the most truthful. The resentment and hurt drawn from before couldn't be healed with a superficial handshake. But it was enough to set them straight.

And that was why it happened.

The world began to shake again. And from the dark, came a chilling howl, not unlike that of foxes screaming in the night. There was a loud crashing sound, like before when they were dragged here in the first place. Except, when the shaking had stopped and the noise had died down, they were still here, trapped in the dark.

"W-why didn't that work?" Govert whipped out his notes, flipping through the pages furiously. He stopped when he heard a loud clacking sound in the distance. Chirping soon followed. Hearing the fragile song of birds would normally bring about relief, almost a sense of normalcy as one would feel upon waking up in the morning to their sweet songs. But that was not the case here. There was something distinctly wrong about it. There was this soft, grinding noise, like someone was sharpening a knife very, very slowly.

The sound gradually grew louder, and Abel motioned for the sprite to turn off the lantern. Regardless of whatever qualms and anger the group held before, they dropped it in favor of getting away from whatever it was that was sitting in the dark. They all held hands, like children, and traversed through the darkness. The sound died down. And they could all breathe again.

"_Dios, _what was that?" Antonio whispered, looking over his shoulder. It was an instinctive action and utterly useless considering he couldn't see anything but they couldn't risk lighting the lantern to give away their position. Abel shrugged; another useless gesture, "Don't know. Don't care." And they left it at that. They had only walked a short distance before Michelle poked Abel sharply on the shoulder.

Her voice sounded raspier than usual. "Light. Over there." And in the distance a faint green light glimmered in the distance. Her hand tightened painfully on his. She was scared. So he squeezed back to reassure her. He debated going over there, finding what it was. Ignorance and safety within the darkness. Danger and knowledge in the light. How poetic.

The pirate spoke again, "It could be a clue."

"Or a trap." There was a collective sigh as it seemed the two would get in a fight again.

Govert, ever the peacemaker, spoke up, "Let's just go. Moving around like this is getting us nowhere, right 'Chel…?"

"Right!" the girl said brightly and he felt a sharp tug as the girl ran forward. He was going to scold her, tell her off for dragging him around.

It was then that Abel was smacked with another realization.

He had heard the sapling's voice in front of him, not beside him. And as they neared the light, he saw that Michelle was holding Govert's hand, followed by Antonio and…ugh, himself. So, if Michelle was up there, and the bastard was holding one hand…

Who the hell had he spoken to? _"Heehee."_ He turned around to see this bony, failure of an imitation of Michelle. Could have fooled him, being here in the dark, they might as well have been the same, but as they got closer and closer to the light the differences were far more obvious. This thing was too skinny, clothes hanging off of it and flapping about. The face was a sallow, pinched thing, with eyes that were far too big and a mouth that was far too wide. It smiled at him, showing him a mouth full of jagged, mismatched teeth.

"_What's wrong big bro? Cat got your tongue?" _He froze. Just…froze. He couldn't move and he couldn't look away. It jumped on him, grabbing him by the shoulders and unhinged its jaw, its mouth large enough to rip his entire face off in one bite. Yelling, he fell backwards, trying to get the thing off of him. Someone called his name, although he wasn't sure who. Didn't have time to check.

"Get the fuck off of me!" he yelled, trying to pull the thing off.

He grabbed the top of its jaw. Then grabbed the bottom. He pushed forward and kicked with all his might, intent on ripping it apart. But try as he might, it continued to stick to him, leaning closer and closer. It nearly took a chunk out of his forehead when he lost his grip in ripping out a tooth. The thing screeched. And the empty spot dripped black blood onto his face.

Then he became aware of someone else's screams. He took a chance and turned his head. The pirate was in the same situation, struggling to get another imitation off of his back. The real Michelle lay there on the ground, near a small green lantern, bleeding out. The real Govert, struggled against an imitation of Abel. Fuck. He fought more viciously, pulling even harder on the creature's jaw. It screeched, and it began to crack, just a bit. But just when he thought he'd won, the thing unsheathed a huge set of fucking claws. It stabbed him in the wrist and his grip slackened. "Fuck!"

Just as the thing was about to tear into him, a black blur flew past, just barely missing the tip of his nose. He looked up and saw the pirate standing over him, extending a hand. He was covered in blood, both black and red. Why him and not Govert? Not Michelle? "Get up!" Abel snapped out of it, taking the pirate's hand and running over to help the losing ivy sprite. As it charged, claws bared, Abel dodged and jabbed it in the gut. He rolled out of the way for Antonio, who whipped out his halberd, and in one practiced move, decapitated the disgusting creature.

Govert was bleeding, clutching an arm. He hobbled over to Michelle. "Shit, 'Chel here-"

"I'm okay but we gotta go!" she spat out, before whimpering at the pain in her shoulder. "There… might be more…" She tried to get up.

Antonio moved forward, "No, don't move you should stay still." He put a hand on an uninjured shoulder, pushing her softly down. But the howling started up again, the sound seeming to come from everywhere. No rest for the weary.

"Move your ass!" Abel ordered, shoving the rosemary and pirate into the darkness. He then grabbed the motionless ivy sprite and charged after them. It was even less comforting than the light. His legs felt unstable, like they would give out at any moment. God, it had been a long time since he had actually felt scared for his life. It had always been someone else in danger that he worried about. Not his own.

"What do we do now?!" the pirate yelled over the noise. For the love of God, he already got the idea that these things wanted to scare them. Could they just shut up for a second?

It wasn't helping him think of what to do. Damn distracting screaming. So Abel just went with saying the obvious, "Just fucking run!" Soon lights began to appear, floating in the distance. Each one was a sickening green, and it bobbed up and down, as if waving for them to come over. They stopped, trying to turn around to avoid the mass of lights, but there were even more behind them. Chasing them.

"_Heehee. Heeheeheeheeheeheehee!" _Add creepy laughter to this fucking mess and that just tears it. This officially, could not get any worse.

The lights got closer, they were closing in. In the distance, they could see them. The figures, some familiar to him, and some not. Their bodies were twisted, knobby. But they moved with frightening speed. Some even strayed away from the green light, forcing the pirate and the aconite to fight them off. The other younger sprites were useless at this point, injured as they were. It were so many of them…It seemed for a moment, all was lost. But in the corner of his eye, he saw it. A warm, gold light, shining in the distance. The pirate seemed to have noticed it as well. It goes without saying that they made a mad dash for it. It was a squeeze, seeing as how it was beyond the little circle the creatures were forming around them.

"Bastard! Get the ones on the left, I'll take the right!" The pirate needed no instruction. He was already decimating them, ripping through the doppelgangers with ease. Show off. Meanwhile the aconite had only Michelle's paring knife. Not like he needed it, much less used it. He broke each and every one of their necks instead with his own two hands. At one point, Govert helped him, throwing an explosive at a particularly stubborn doppelganger. But that was all he could really do.

Eventually they reached it, the edge of the circle and the beginning of the warm light. The source came from the center, an enormous ball of light floated there along with a single silhouetted figure. It was the last person he expected to see. "Horse bastard, why the hell are you here?"

The demon scoffed, brushing away some nonexistent dust from its shoulder. "As vulgar as always. Will you not wait for a moment? I propose to you an escape."

Antonio stared at the thing, cautious. He pointed his halberd at it, "And why should we listen to you?" He kept his voice light, but his eyes were dark, "It'd be nice if you explained quickly, I'd rather not have my blade slip on accident."

The horse snorted. "Impertinent human." It didn't sound insulted at all. Just amused. "Though I suppose I should be glad that a gift was neither wasted nor useless." The pirate didn't answer. His eyes widening in realization, he kept looking back to the halberd, then to the green lights approaching. "Fear not. To have tampered with such a thing would be blasphemous. And do be patient, the circle is not so easily broken after all." True to his word, the creatures that were chasing them stopped short, being burned by the walls of the barrier.

"As you can see, we are quite safe. For now." Then with a wave of his hand, he conjured a plain, grey mirror. Instead of their reflections, it showed them one of the many hallways they had passed. The outside world had never looked so good. "Escape. A delightful prospect, yes?"

Abel snarled at the horse, "Get to the point. What's the catch?"

The only sign of the horse's annoyance was the slightest narrowing of the eyes. "One man, one door, one key. The Mirror of Sheba opens with the Key of Solomon." The horse produced a gilded key, completely black with a white rose at the top. "Only one may move forward."

Antonio beat Abel to the punch. Literally. He punched the demon right in the face. Abel could respect that. "_No jodas conmigo…*_" He shook his head, composing himself. "You're lying. There must be another way out!" But it said nothing.

For once, the horse seemed solemn, a melancholy air about him.

Ignoring the angry pirate, he walked over to Abel and passed him the key. "Choose." And with that, it disappeared. The aconite felt the sweat drip down his face. They all jumped when something cracked. Turning around, they found that one creature managed to break the barrier a bit. They were running out of time. The aconite looked at the key, looking from the injured younglings to the disheveled pirate. "What the fuck…" he growled lowly. What kind of decision was this? He needed to get the saplings out of here. But he also needed to bail Cici out too. Everyone looked at him, their eyes filled with emotion the he, for once, couldn't decipher. Why..?

The rosemary then raised a hand, "I'll stay." Eyes focused on her.

Abel protested, but she put a hand over his mouth, smiling sadly. "Think about it. Cici is still out there. How am I going to help him if I'm all banged up?"

Govert sighed, "Hehe, guess that kicks me out of the picture too." He winced, looking down at his arm. It was probably broken. "So I guess…that leaves one of you?"

The two men looked at each other and for once, they weren't glaring, they weren't trying to one-up or intimidate each other. There was only grim resignation. Someone would have to yield.

And the pirate faced the damn facts. He had been pretty much useless, with his ignorance of magic and the like. He wouldn't have even gotten this far if he didn't have them here. Antonio gritted his teeth, "Go. I'll watch these two." He turned away, facing the weakness in the barrier and away from the mirror. "That's the least I can do."

Abel didn't respond, but the steps behind him told the pirate he was going. Antonio wanted to save Lovino. He did. He wanted to go. But so did everyone else. And out of all of them, he was the least qualified. He knew nothing of magic. He knew nothing of his enemies. Of the two of them, Abel knew what he was doing. And despite what he had said about the sprite, he knew that he wouldn't let Lovino get hurt.

It was only for the best.

A click. The door behind him must have unlocked and he turned around, just to see the outside world one more time. The mirror had opened inwards, revealing what little was left of the sun's rays as it disappeared over the horizon.

The sprite stood before it, motionless. And the pirate turned away, steeling himself for the onslaught that would surely come when the barrier broke.

"Antonio." The pirate whirled around, surprised that his actual name had been used. The aconite was standing right behind him. For once, he didn't look angry or upset, he looked…tired. "You better not fuck this up. Don't make this go to waste."

"What-"

He didn't have time to argue as the aconite literally lifted him over his head and threw him straight threw the opening. "Wait!" But the cry fell upon deaf ears as he was shoved back into reality and found himself on the cold marble floor. Looking up, he found a large mirror, the one he had been shoved through, was broken. And he was now in an entirely different hall than the one he had run down before getting trapped in the demon's lair. So he was pretty much lost.

But these things were the furthest from his mind. Why? Why'd he change his mind? Why had he let Antonio go? But the pirate didn't have much time left to ponder these things as he saw the last of the sun's rays disappear. Lovino. He had to find Lovino. His head ached and when he stood up, the world seemed to spin. But he ran anyway, searching every corner, looking through every door.

And as he passed through the halls, he found it. A trail of flowers and blood, leading to another, ominous set of double doors. God let him not be too late…

* * *

Meanwhile, Lovino woke up. Clutching his throbbing head, he gingerly pulled himself up from the cold marble floor. He looked around. Gigantic windows, pews all around. He was in the fucking altar alright. So where the hell was Antonio? Where the hell was anyone?

He stood up shakily, using one of the pews as a support. Checking himself quickly, he found that he practically had all his belongings. Even his dagger was cleaned up and sheathed neatly into his belt. How had he even survived? As much as he would love to say that he used some special power that he never knew about to save himself that obviously wasn't the case. Someone pulled him out of there. Was Nicnevin fucking playing with him?

He shook that thought quickly out of his head. Might as well take advantage of whatever game she seemed to be playing. If she wanted to fucking underestimate him and let him live then fine! But right now, there was a problem. He had lost Anri and Feliks, Antonio wasn't even here, and he was all by himself, trapped somewhere in this godforsaken place. Whoop-dee-fucking-doo.

Walking over to the exit, he tried to open the door. It wouldn't budge at all. He kicked it and punched it but it didn't do so much as splinter. He resorted to screaming and yelling, hoping somebody, anybody would come to open the door. And yet no one came.

He began hyperventilating. "Oh fuck, oh fuck…" he whispered to himself, pacing back and forth across the room. Soon he resorted to trying to pry break down the windows and even stepping and patting the floor for something, anything! "Dammit, there's got to be a way out of here! There has to be!" he said, panicking. He couldn't be stuck here, of all places. He had to get out, those idiot sprites were gone and only God knows what was happening to them. Shit, he had just left them behind! And this place wasn't doing him any favors either, the old memories of this place were rushing back and he was beginning to feel sick.

As he continued to fruitlessly pound the door, hoping something would happen, someone or something began banging on the door back. He jumped at the noise, eyeing the double doors that led into the main hall suspiciously. He knelt down, hoping that he would be able to make out who it was on the other side through the cracks around the door. Shit if it was his captor or wannabe savior or…that fucking doll…he shuddered. He pulled out his dagger, which now decided to not come out again. What. The. Fuck.

"Shit!" he hissed quietly, "What the fuck is wrong with you? Just get out al-"

He stilled when the door began to creak and bend. The knocks were no longer insistent and meek. It sounded as if someone wanted to break inside. And it was working. With nothing to protect himself and no way out, there was only one thing left to do.

Hide.

But where? There wasn't a lot in terms of hiding places, and the pews weren't exactly ideal. The only good hiding place would be under the altar, and you'd have to be an idiot to not realize that too if you were the seeker. The knocking wasn't knocking anymore. The thing was pounding the door with a goddamn battering ram. Damn it! He just about hid behind the altar table as soon as the door collapsed in on itself. "Lovinoooo~!" a playful voice called before laughing. Double shit.

_Dios_, he was so dead. "Where are you honey?" He could hear her waving her sword all about, probably crushing the pews that touched the center aisle. "I didn't mean to yell, sweetheart," she cooed, as if talking to a small, frightened child, "Come out, come out, wherever you are~!"

Her steps echoed loudly throughout the room, making it sound even more intimidating than before.

So his supposed savior hadn't bothered to get rid of this persistent bitch. '_Gee, thanks so, so much dammit!_' he screamed in his head. He didn't have time to curse anymore as he saw two little feet stepping right before the table. She stabbed the ground with her rapier and kneeled down.

In popped her disgusting face, still smeared with inky, black fluid. "I found you~!" He backed away immediately, but she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him out with inhuman strength.

"F-fuck, let me-" he choked, before having the air harshly squeezed out of him. He coughed and spluttered as he was lifted off the ground. He clawed desperately at the hand that had curled around his neck. It was burning. God he couldn't breathe, he couldn't breathe. And he coughed and coughed but nothing would come out. Every time he inhaled something would get stuck. It felt like just when he would get some blessed air, something would push it back out and he would be forced to spit out what little oxygen he had left in him.

She laughed at his efforts. Smiled as the crazed thrashing began to recede, growing weaker with each passing second. "See? See I'm being so nice to you right now! I'm letting you go out so, so quietly even though you dared to do this to me!" She squeezed his throat again.

Black dots danced in his vision. All he could think about was how much he wanted to breathe, how much he needed to be free. He tried to pry the hand from his throat, but found he no longer had the strength. He could barely lift his arms anymore. He thought vaguely back to his knife, and feebly tried to pull it out. Ermelinda simply cut it off his belt. "Can't have that now can we?" She smiled dotingly at him, "We'll have such _fun_ won't we? It will be a pleasure to pull out those pretty eyes of yours. I suppose I'll take them as payment and we'll call it even yes?" Another feeble cough. "Oh you agree?" Lovino didn't respond.

"Of course you do!" Saliva dripped down the poor Italian's mouth as he felt the oxygen completely disappear. It wouldn't be long until he croaked now. He shut his eyes tightly, just as he began his apologies to everyone, began lining up those regrets, began remembering all the wasted years…then pressure suddenly lessened. He could breathe albeit just barely. The voices around him were muffled and he heard a scream echo throughout the room. But this ended abruptly in several gargled coughs. And he fell onto the ground immediately after.

After reorienting himself, he rolled over. His voice got stuck in his throat and he couldn't believe his eyes. It was Antonio, in the fucking flesh. And Antonio was pretty much beating the shit out of whatever was left of that thing lying on the ground. He couldn't understand a word he was saying because the guy was cursing completely in Spanish. And then he stopped and turned around.

Lovino flinched at the sight. The pirate was cut on his side, the wound looking like it had reopened and black liquid was splattered all over him, his clothes, his hands, his face. And his eyes…they were dark, so dark he thought they were black for a second.

And he was afraid. Afraid when that anger would reach him. Not like he hadn't deserved it for dragging the pirate into this mess. And then of course, practically lying to his face about what he was, about being the freak he was. Hell, he had a lot of things he had to answer for. He waited for angry accusations and a punch, a kick, anything. He had faced rejection many times in his life, but that didn't mean he would ever get used to it. He would never be able to push past the hateful stares, and those three little words that seemed to constitute his entire experience with normal people, his entire experience with the outside world.

Lovino didn't have the courage to look the man in the eyes. He didn't want hatred to be the last thing he would see on the pirate's face. He shut them tightly as he spoke, "A-Antonio…I-I'm sorry. I'm sorry I ever brought you into this! So I'm-"

The herbalist was cut off when instead of slapping him, yelling at him, denying any of his apologies, the Spaniard chose to hug him. If it could really be called that, it was more of a squeezing his lungs out thing. As if the pirate was scared he would fly away if he didn't hold on tight enough. They just sat there for a while and when it seemed that Antonio had realized he wasn't going to disappear in thin air, he let go.

The pirate looked at him, gently caressing his cheek. "Why are you apologizing? I don't care about any of that. You're here, you're alive, that's all I care about." Antonio moved to hug him again, but Lovino pushed him back.

"You're not…you're not mad?" Because there's no way…no way he couldn't. He didn't want to get his hopes up.

"_Mi querido_, I don't think I could ever truly be angry at you." He tapped their foreheads together. "So please don't cry, _mi precioso_."

"W-who's the one that's crying?! I'm not!" Antonio chuckled weakly.

The only reason Lovino didn't break his nose was because the guy saved his life. A-and maybe because…because it felt a little nice to not be yelled at or attacked. Just maybe. So for now, just for now, he would let himself believe that it was all okay. And he leaned onto Antonio and let the rain pour down his face.

...

* * *

**...**

**Them Spanish curses? You shouldn't say them. Bad. Bad words. Also badly translated, so you could be saying "I eat goats" for all I know.**

_**Pendejo – Jerk, motherfucker, yadda yadda**_  
_**No jodas conmigo – Don't fuck with me**_

**Don't quote me on this. I ain't Spanish.**

_**UPDATE: Stuff got fixed on these words thanks to Mapple Syrup. I heart you. **_

**So that's that. I hope you guys could handle this. I know it felt a bit off at some points but I wanted this to happen. So it did. **


	10. The Witch of Elphame

**I promised myself and to all of you that it would be shorter. It's not. Not by that much. Sorry bout that. Updates will be coming more erratically in case you haven't noticed. Real life is coming back to haunt me so I won't have that much time to write. But I will definitely try. This chapter was hard to write. I re-wrote it seven times, I swear. But anyways, to the story! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. **

* * *

**Chapter 10: The Witch of Elphame**

"What is the meaning of this?" Nicnevin said, her voice surprisingly amused, despite being tricked by what she had believed to be her most loyal servant. "I have always loved a good play, but to think the twist would be so…treacherous." She watched as her darling little witch hugged the appointed sacrifice like his life depended on it. They exchanged apologies, holding onto each other for comfort after such close encounters with her beloved guard dogs.

She turned away from the scene, snapping her fingers. It was a bit harder to get it to sound loud enough. The blood had slicked her fingers and made it difficult to make the desired noise. As prompt as ever, Orobas appeared. The horse demon looked about the room dispassionately. Half of the walls of his mistress' private study were splattered with the remains of her newest toy. Poor girl, she hadn't lasted long after the demon had ordered her to prepare for the arrival of his young ward.

The woman smiled at him, a sinister expression indeed. "To think you would do this to me of all people," she said, her eyes becoming sharper, the pupils becoming more catlike. "You know the consequences," she said, "And yet you dare play this game with me?"

The demon did not answer. He conjured his spear and pointed it at his mistress, "A never-ending game tires its players. I intend to reach the end."

The woman growled, before conjuring a similar looking spear. "I always thought you'd be the last one to betray me. Oh how wrong I was…You forget I own you. Do you have the power to go against your master, your god?"

The demon readied its spear, seeming almost indifferent, "A god you say? All that is before me is but a small desperate child, who still does not understand the extent of her powers…or their limits." The witch lifted her spear, her smile freezing up.

She laughed without humor, her eyes darkening till it was black as she rammed the spear towards his chest.

...

* * *

...

Anri was not very happy with her current position. Her dress was ruined and it was her favorite one. Perhaps it wasn't the best idea to wear her favorite, but she had always believed such things would bring good luck. Now she could see that was not the case. She could hear her little Cici getting hurt down below and she would not, could not, stand for this. She stretched, pulled pushed, did whatever she could. And slowly but surely, those chains began to yield. At long last, she ripped through those bonds and was free. And falling. Oopsies.

But she wasn't afraid. She hadn't been afraid for her own life in a while. Quickly, her hand shot out to one of the other chains hanging in the darkness and halted her descent. It was dark but there was the smallest bit of light emanating below her. Looking down, she squinted and saw a large daisy blossoming in the center of the floor below. It glowed with a soft, golden light. It reminded her a bit of the cottage back at home, with its garden that flourished under her sapling's hand. A daisy…how fitting for someone like Lovino.

Her mind flashed back to the time he would let her put crowns of daisies in his hair. He was so cute. He would run about the fields, returning and clinging to her legs whenever he got scared. Or met Abel. Almost always, he ran to her because her silly little brother did something wrong. He was just a gruff flower that proclaimed he didn't like kids. But it was amusing to see how he tried to cheer Cici up whenever he got scared. He had even made a stuffed rabbit toy for her sapling, going so far as to wear a rabbit mask to amuse the child. The sapling had called it stupid, but he laughed all the same. Oh how she missed her little Cici! She wished those days could come back, it would definitely be better than the things they were facing now.

As delicately as a petal, she slid down to the ground. It was there that she noticed there were various legs and arms sticking out of the ground. The daisy, having filled the room with its roots, must have crushed whatever happened to get in its way.

Fear surged through her. For a moment, she was worried that her Cici had been buried under the lot, but touching the still burning seal on her hand, she knew he was okay. He was alive. The thing about these seals was that they bound the contractors together. The master could summon familiars at any moment, but if they were too far away, it didn't work as well. That and the seal only said that the other person was alive. It wasn't advanced enough to provide communication or location. Anri sighed, it seemed like she had her work cut out for her. But before she left, she remembered something. A blonde, spontaneous something.

Single-handedly, she grabbed the gigantic, chain cocoon hanging in the air and threw it over her shoulder. Bringing it down as easily as if it were a small baby and not a fully grown man-sprite covered in several extra pounds of metal. She ripped apart the chains quite easily, freeing the orchid sprite from his bonds.

"Oh my god, girl you are a lifesaver!" Feliks cried out, clinging to her. "Like, it was totally horrible and is Cici-"

"I have no idea where Cici could be," Anri interjected before the sprite could go on a tangent. She looked at the ground sadly. Could he be hurt? Oh goodness what if he was hurt?

Feliks must have seen the panic flash across her face, as he grabbed her by the shoulder, "C'mon we have to get going right? Like, Cici isn't going to find Antonio all by himself!"

But she hadn't heard a word he said. She tensed at the touch on her shoulder and turned towards the door at the very end of the hall. The altar. If anything, her baby should be in there.

"Anri? Hey, Anri like…girl you're not seriously thinking-"

"I'm coming Cici!" she screamed before charging headfirst towards the door. She tackled the door, which splintered under the force. She sighed, brushing off the woodchips on her dress. "Are you coming or not, Feliks?" she called out, but she couldn't care less what his answer was.

"Of course, but like wait up! I can't like run that fast! It'll totally make me all sweaty and gross!"

Watching Feliks run, she reminded herself that once they got out of this, she would have to up their training regimen. They were all letting themselves go again! After all her hard work to whip them all into shape! Huffing, the chrysanthemum grabbed the orchid's hand before charging headfirst into the darkness. "We don't have time, my sapling needs us!"

Charging through the door, they found themselves being blinded by great white lights seeming to come from everywhere. Squinting, she managed to see a large group of chairs. They were lined up neatly, and had aisles all on the sides. Above them was a single balcony overlooking it all. A stage. They stood upon a stage. And this entire place was one, gigantic theater.

As far as Anri could see, the theater was empty, save for the balcony that overlooked them all above. There was a bit of rustling and in a soft voice that carried across the room, the witch said, "My, my, it isn't your turn yet." With a loud snap, the theater went dark. Something grabbed Anri, something rough, calloused, more like wood instead of human skin. Before the person had a chance to do anything, she kicked him as hard as she could. There was a loud snap from the spot and a cry of pain. A sound of crashing and terrified murmurs washed over them.

"Like, you better get your scrubby hands off of me you jerks!" the orchid snapped beside her. They stood back-to-back, randomly kicking and punching anything that dared to come too close. Say what one will, Feliks was a terrifying force to be reckoned with given the chance.

"Where's Cici? Tell me right now!" Anri commanded although she didn't expect a reply. Throwing another hard left hook, she felt slightly bad for probably breaking that poor person's jaw. Then again, they weren't telling her the info she wanted so she supposed it was justified.

The witch laughed, the sound seeming to come from all sides. "Oh, you'll see him soon enough. Him and his sweet little lover. But until then, sit back and enjoy the show~!"

…

The spotlights went out, and stars danced in her eyes. She punched blindly, but her fists caught nothing. And then there was pain, blossoming at the back of her head. For what seemed like a second, her mind went totally blank. Before she knew it, she was once again bound. Except this time, she was bound to a chair, sitting in the audience section in the very middle in front of the raised stage. There was a dull stone altar with a single light shining down upon it. From the small illumination, she shifted her head to take a look at her surroundings. And to her delight and worry, she found she was not alone. Feliks was on her left while Abel was on her right. Leaning back, she found Govert and Michelle sitting behind them, leaning on each other's shoulders in their sleep.

So they were all here. But, ever the optimist, she supposed at least they had been imprisoned together. Now if only she had someone to talk to…

First order of business then, kick Abel till he wakes up. Or head butt him. Whichever was easiest, Abel was not picky with how he woke up. Not having much use in her legs, she leaned her head back and smashed it into her brother's forehead.

The aconite sprite woke up quickly enough. He spluttered a bit, trying to reorient himself and probably stretch, only to find that he was stuck to – as Abel might say – a motherfucking chair. Honestly he needed to wash his mouth sometime. Another thing to add to the list when they got home, ask for more soap from Feliciano.

"What the fuck….why the fuck are we tied to motherfucking chairs?" Abel all but shouted. He always managed to express his anger in that nearly monotone voice of his. She headbutted him again for cursing. Danger or no, it was not a good habit to exercise.

"What the fu….Dang it, why are you hitting me?" Abel growled, trying to lean away from her.

"No cursing, it's a bad influence on Cici!" she whispered. Don't ask her why she whispered. It just seemed, odd to speak so loudly when everything around them was so quiet.

Abel looked at her incredulously. "Is this really the time? He already curses like a sailor!" he hissed quietly back.

"That doesn't mean he can't change! Don't encourage him!"

"He's not even here!"

"You need to get used to it anyway!"

Abel groaned, putting his head back against his chair. "Why the hell are we even arguing about this? Brat's not even here." He stopped to look around, "Wherever 'here' is."

Anri sighed, before telling him, "I don't know. I…I got caught…me and Feliks…" She stopped and bit her lip, guilt running through her. What kind of plant was she to let her sapling be taken away so readily?

Abel sighed, "So were we. Damn bastard escaped though." Bastard? Oh, he meant Antonio. She admonished him with a light head butt. The subsequent 'ow' led to the others waking up.

"Like where…" Feliks quieted down, hearing how loud and odd it sounded when his voice echoed through the room. "Like where are we?"

Michelle and Govert struggled a bit. Leaning back, Anri saw that the two's bonds had gotten tangled and their heads were stuck together. "Ouch! Let go of me, ya hear? I ain't this type of girl!" Michelle screeched, trying hard to pull away.

"Ahaha, this must be some big misunderstanding rig – ow! Can you stop struggling?" Govert whined, pulling back as well. Needless to say, it just got even more tangled.

"Like, can you not scream like that? You're like totally messing up the mood for this scene," Feliks drawled, focusing his gaze back onto the stage. Anri followed his stare and found that the cold, stone altar was no longer empty. Instead, a large crystal ball sat upon it. It was almost comical how large it was, about half the height as Abel was tall. And inside that crystal ball, a clear scene of her sweet little Cici and that charming, little Antonio mumbling soft words they could not quite hear.

Whispering _gently_ to the sprites behind her to shut up, she watched.

Lovino was wiping his eyes. Was he crying? Squinting, Anri could make out purple bruises forming on her dear boy's neck. "Stupid bastard, what took you so long?" he said, his voice sounding far softer than usual. The pirate laughed, a bit of hysteric relief in his voice. "What's so funny bastard?" the herbalist snapped, trying and failing, to glare at the Spaniard.

"Oh nothing…nothing…it's just, you're just so cute Lovi~!" The following hug made Abel crush the armrests. He began to emit a very scary aura.

Being next to him, Anri could hear him mumble something along the lines of, "Get your goddamn hands of the brat you little motherfucker". She sighed quietly, some flowers would never change.

Behind her, she heard Michelle whisper very, very loudly to Govert, "I thought Abel gave him his blessing."

The ivy said from the corner of his mouth, "I think it's the chair. Maybe a splinter is getting stuck in his ass and that's why he's all prickly with him again."

The rosemary whispered excitedly back, "So when do you think they'll finally kiss?" Anri had a feeling this conversation would not end well.

Govert continued on, oblivious, "I bet on tomorrow morning." The dark aura surrounding the aconite grew more intense, almost palpable, with dark purple clouds hanging over his presence.

And then Feliks joined in, "I like, totally bet it's gonna go down right now. Like, look how close they're getting, they're practically kissing already!" the orchid hissed to the two above.

Michelle huffed, "Well I think-"

"I think you three should shut up while you still have your heads on," the grumpy blonde growled, trying his hardest to glare at the three of them. When that failed, he opted for sending waves of his discontent with that dark aura of his. "I did not give that bastard my fucking blessing to go molest my kid," he hissed.

Of course, since they were all tied up they didn't have much to fear for what they said next. Feliks tutted, "Like, you let him go through right? It's totes the same thing."

"Yeah, so does it really matter if they go all kissy-goo-goo on ya?" Michelle added. Govert was smarter though, laughing nervously and trying not to fuel the fire.

As Abel started making this scary gnashing sound from grinding his teeth together, Anri decided it was best for them to redirect their attention to the screen.

Lovino was patching Antonio up. The chrysanthemum winced at the wounds. Some cuts had gone dangerously close to some very important arteries. The pirate was very, very lucky. "Stupid bastard, what did you do while I was gone, fucking roll around in glass? Look at this!" the herbalist snapped, although Anri could see he was biting his lip like he always did when he was worried. He trembled slightly, touching one shallow wound that just missed his jugular.

"Heh, sorry Lovi, I was just…worried about you," the pirate said, laughing slightly but hissing when the herbalist applied a salve to his cuts. In a quieter voice, he leaned on the young Italian, "Why did you come after me?" he asked, putting a hand over the other's shoulder so he couldn't run away, "You could have gotten killed."

The Italian didn't look the pirate in the eye and remained silent. For a while, it seemed like he wouldn't answer, that the question would be left to hang in the air. "Bastard…what did you think I was gonna do? Fucking drop into my life and expect me to leave you out there…you're my-" He caught himself and turned red, spluttering, "I-I mean, I didn't use up all my stuff to save your sorry ass and then let you-"

"-fucking die on me? Of course, Lovi, of course," Antonio finished for him, tapping their foreheads together. "I'll just take that as a compliment, _mi tesoro." _

Lovino rolled his eyes, trying to snort away the embarrassment and so obviously failing. It seemed that whenever he tried to be keep the color from rising it only got worse. Anri could barely hold in the giggles when the pirate stayed like that, causing her boy to splutter even more. Ah, children in love. Looking to the side she saw Feliks wasn't even trying to hold the squeals and giggles. On her right the sound of grinding teeth intensified.

The herbalist sighed, refusing to look the pirate in the eye and pulled away. He pulled from his bag the map of the castle, trying and failing, to figure out where they were. "Oi, bastard, did you pass some freaky looking doll room covered in plants on your way here?"

The pirate took a moment, "Uh…no, but I did see a lot of mirrors." Abel looked like he wanted to bang his head against the wall.

Her sapling looked just about to do the same, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration, "Narcissistic bastard."

"Eh? I mean it! Those were the only things I got to see before I found you, honest!" he cried out, putting up his hands in surrender.

The herbalist grumbled again before rolling up the map and standing up. "Ugh, this is pointless if we don't know where the fuck we are." He looked outside worriedly. It was dark out, the sun having disappeared long ago and the moon acting as the primary light source. Sad to say it wouldn't be much going deeper into this wicked place, and once again, Anri feared for her little sapling. The Italian grimaced, "We're running out of time." He looked pointedly at the Spaniard, a flicker of self-loathing passed over his face.

He looked away from the pirate, clenching his fists, "Antonio…you need to-"

"Go with you? Of course I will!" A vein throbbed in the little sapling's forehead.

He grabbed the pirate by the cravat and pulled him down to his level, "No you fucking idiot! You need to go!"

The pirate pretended not to understand, although his eyes told a different story. "Of course I'll go. Go with you, you mean?"

The herbalist shook him, eyes flaring, "No you stupid bastard! I mean…" His voice began to tremble a bit, "G-go _without _me. You have to get out of this place." Antonio's expression hardened, dropping the playful façade and opened his mouth to speak. But Lovino would have none of it.

"You fucking bastard, just shut up and listen!" The Italian took another shuddering breath, "This…This has nothing to do with you. Just go. I need….I-I need to find my _f-famiglia_ and that bitch isn't gonna make a deal with me if you're around." His hands trembled, but the grip on the other's collar only tightened.

The pirate put a hand on those curled fists, "But Lovi-"

"But nothing!" the young brunet shrieked, "Stop being a dick and just listen! You need to go! I didn't risk everything to get you out my fucking mess to see you get killed!"

The Spaniard's eyes flashed, "And I didn't claw my way out of hell and abandon everyone just so you can run off into danger again!"

The Italian didn't register the words, "Shut up! Can't you understand a simple order? I'm not taking you!"

"You can't make me, Lovino," the other growled, and the herbalist flinched involuntarily.

"Y-you fucking jackass! Don't you see that I-"

"No, Lovino don't you see that I'm worried about you? That I care for you? It's enough to know you're here in this…this hell. I'm not leaving you to face that witch alone!" He roughly pulled away the fists holding his cravat and he hugged the herbalist close to his chest. "How could you even suggest that? How could I ever leave you to run into danger like this Lovino?" he murmured softly, intending to assuage the herbalist's indignant fury.

But the Italian couldn't accept that. He pushed the other man away at arm's length, "No! No fuck you, no!" Lovino backed away, looking ready to bolt for the door. The pirate followed him, mirroring his footsteps.

"Lovi…Lovino, _mi amor_, please-"

The herbalist put his hands over his ears, "No, no I can't do it! I can't fucking do it!"

The pirate's voice was softer now, "We can do it together, we can-"

"No I can't!" the herbalist screamed, tears welling up in his eyes, "I-I can't fucking drag everyone down again!" His back hit the wall, having nowhere else to go. Lovino leaned against the wall, covering his face in his hands. "This is all…T-this is all my fault…" Guilt. Shame. And an abundance of self-loathing. All this hung in the air, clinging to his small, shivering frame. The Spaniard stayed silent, his hands remaining motionless at his sides. But slowly, he walked towards the herbalist, coming so close that their bodies were but a few inches apart. Antonio raised a hand, almost hesitantly. He hovered over the other's cheek, yet the softest whimper that escaped the other's lips made him change direction. Instead, he placed a comforting hand on top of his head. The herbalist peeked through his fingers, his bright, multi-colored eyes looking at him in confusion. Lovino probably expected another caress to the cheek, another affection he always supposed was faked. But instead, Antonio placed a hand in the little sapling's hair. The young brunet looked up at the pirate, ruffling those soft tresses, while wearing a comforting smile. There was no strain, no attempted grin or creepy smirk, just a genuine smile. Not removing his hand from the other's hair, Antonio spoke, "It's not your fault. You've tried your best…you always have." The boy remained silent.

"And this isn't your fault. I'm not humble enough to say it's all mine. But I will confess that my appearance may have had an impact." The herbalist snorted, although it sounded more like a sniffle. The pirate got closer, placing another hand on the other's shoulder. "But it isn't all my fault. Just as it was never any of yours. Things happen Lovino. You can't blame yourself all the time for what happens to you or to others."

The Italian shook his head, uncertainly pulling his hands away from his face to look back up. In a shaky voice, the young brunet spat bitterly, "But I could have done…something! I could have done better, just did it myself-"

"And would you really have been able to do everything yourself? All alone?"

"I-I would have figured something out!" he yelled, frustrated, "I should have just gone alone, so my stupid fucking ideas don't get everyone killed."

The pirate gave an exasperated sigh before smiling again, pulling the other yet a little bit closer. "There are such things as being too big to tackle alone. And you know, Lovi, you give yourself too little credit. You're smart-"

"I'm an idiot."

"You're sweet."

"Have you fucking heard me talk?"

"You're brave."

"I'm a coward and you know-"

The pirate put a hand over the herbalist's mouth, kissing the younger male on the forehead. "And you're everything anyone could ever hope to be."

The Italian spluttered, "S-shut up! Don't say things that aren't true!" He tried to pull away, but found that he was trapped against the wall. "Pervert! Fuck you, you stupid bastard!" The pirate laughed, pulling away. But not before placing another kiss, this time a light peck on the cheek.

"You're one-of-a-kind, Lovino. Don't you dare forget that." And this one-of-a-kind boy slapped this one-of-a-kind pirate. It sounded like it hurt, but looking at the other's face, it had hardly changed color, not a single red mark to be seen.

But the pirate pouted nonetheless, clinging to the other's arm, "Owww, Lovi that hurt!"

The herbalist rolled his eyes, "Deal with it you-"

He was interrupted by a loud screeching sound. The entire place shook, forcing the two to drop to the ground. And the shaking wasn't restricted to those in the crystal ball. The sprites felt the subsequent shaking. Sad to say they weren't able to do anything about it, being trapped as they were. The images in the crystal faded and the lights went out.

...

* * *

...

"What the flying fuck?!" Lovino screeched, "An earthquake?" Anri and Abel had said that there had been a lot of earthquakes on Sicily back in the day. Lovino hadn't experienced one himself, but damn was it scary. There was a loud scream; this one less, sibilant and more human. It sounded frustrated. And soon after, the shaking stopped. What the hell just happened? Antonio looked just as bewildered and with flaming cheeks, he realized that throughout the ordeal, the pirate had shielded him. And now he was really, really close. Like practically smushed on top of him.

"I think it's stopped," Antonio said, not caring that he was practically straddling Lovino really, really awkwardly, "What do you think that-"

"Get. Off. Of. Me." The Spaniard looked down to see the fuming herbalist, although he couldn't tell if he was turning red from anger or just blushing like usual. He decided to go with the latter. If they weren't in such a dire situation, he probably would have teased the other by snuggling. But not today. A pity.

He got up, pulling the herbalist gently after him. Lovino was pissed that he was being treated like some fragile girl, but let it slide upon looking around them. "Damn…" he said, shocked and awed by the destruction all around them. The ceiling had miraculously not caved in on them, but a couple big chunks had been taken right out of the wall. There were two, notable holes at two walls directly opposite of each other. One hole led to the outside. Another led down to a trashed corridor. All the doors that way were blocked except for one sitting at the end of the hall.

A choice. Escape or go back in. It wasn't a really hard decision. The hard decision was how he was going to get Antonio- "Fucking bastard what do you think you're doing?!" he screeched, as the pirate nonchalantly trotted down the desolate hallway to the door.

The pirate looked back, wearing that dopey expression on his face, "Um…walking…?" When the herbalist growled he added, "To the door…?" No fucking shit.

"I mean why the hell are you walking down there?! Didn't I tell you to go home?!" he said, pacing angrily towards the pirate. "Can you just-"

Antonio stopped him, leaning in and kissing him right on the nose. That shut him up fast. O-only because it caught him by surprise! Who the hell does that? Like, fuck he thought the guy was gonna k-k-kiss him on the m-m – he couldn't finish that train of thought as the red spread all the way to the tips of his ears. "And I told you that I wasn't going to leave you. So I'm here to stay, and you can't make me go~," he finished in that stupid sing-song voice.

The herbalist opened his mouth to protest, but the guy just walked off. He hated people who just did whatever the hell they wanted. Fuck Antonio. If he wanted to die so badly then…then…fuck he couldn't even pretend he didn't care anymore. He wondered when the hell that stupid pirate wriggled his way into his steel trap of a heart. "Are you coming love?" the pirate asked, looking back at him.

"Who are you calling 'love' bastard?" he growled, but ran over, making sure to stay close. N-not like he wanted to or…or…s-something like that. Shut up. They made their way to the door, avoiding the jagged pieces of rubble along the way. Jesus was kind of earthquake was that? He didn't think those things ruined castles in such a selective way. It seemed like the only spots that were fine had some symbol of a scorpion in a circle. Weird, but he knew the significance. Scorpions were supposed to ward off evil, demons in particular. And he ended up, against his will, grabbing the pirate's hand. I-If only to make sure he didn't run away. Antonio didn't say anything when his hand brushed against his. He didn't even put on that shit-eating grin of his, staying silent. He supposed it was the heaviness in the air that was doing it. It was tense, like the quiet before the storm. As they neared the door at the end, Lovino had a strong feeling that he was trespassing…he was going to see something he shouldn't see.

Being right in front of it, he felt himself get a bit sick. And he felt a rush of guilt for having doubted that stupid butler. "Poor bastard…" Lovino said aloud, turning away from the severed head of Orobas that had been nailed to the door. It looked fresh, blood still dripping from the cut and its mouth left open. Antonio ducked his head in respect for the…dead? Could demons die like humans did? But all the same, he supposed any creature would be in pain after being beheaded.

Lovino clenched his fists. Damn bitch. He reached angrily for the doorknob, ready to throw open the damn door, when the horse spoke, "Be wary. The hawk knows not the acuity of her prey, but is no less fierce as a predator." That was all it could say before going slack once more. His heart hammered in his chest, waiting a bit more in hope that it would say more.

It didn't. That wasn't helpful, but he expected nothing less from that stupid butler.

He felt his hand shake, touching the door's handle, but it was steadied when the pirate put his hand over it. Together, they threw open the door. They were expecting guards, scary things outside. Hell, they were expecting Nicnevin herself to be waiting and ready to kill them. This was different.

Instead of some horrifying room filled with dolls, mirrors, or a combination of the two, they found themselves in a forest. It was dark, but not terrifyingly so like when Lovino was trapped in the doll room. The entire place was seemed to glow with an odd purple hue and there were packs of gold, glowing fireflies going about, like little lanterns in the night. Great trees towered above them, with branches stretching out to the sky, but it was not so dense that they were unable to see the sky above. It was nighttime, with the full moon out and all the stars glittering brightly in the distance. And looking before them, there was a path where the trees separated. It led to some clearing beyond, but the flower bushes blocked any view of what lay out there.

As they gawked at the beautiful scene before them however, the door slammed shut. The two of them turned around, but found that no a door or even a wall behind them. In fact, all that was behind them was pure and utter darkness. As both of them had had enough of wandering blindly in the dark, they silently agreed to move forward.

"It's beautiful," Antonio said aloud, looking all around before snorting, "It's ironic isn't it?"

The herbalist stifled a laugh. It was probably hysterics and exhaustion that made him find that even remotely funny. "Yeah, yeah I guess."

"Sad to say I've seen it before," the pirate added nonchalantly. The Italian whipped his head around.

"Say what?"

The pirate shrugged, "It's beautiful, but I can think of a great many other things that are even more magnificent." His eyes darted to the herbalist, and he smiled at him, "Yes, there are many things more beautiful things than this."

The young brunet turned pink, "W-well, whatever, just keep walking idiot." He wasn't suggesting what Lovino thought he was suggesting right? Probably just a joke, he told himself. That didn't make the fuzzy feeling in his chest go away though.

"This place reminds of me of England though. At one point we went inland, and we saw the most interesting of places." Did they really have time for this? All the same, the Italian listened to the Spaniard anyway, "A ring of stones! Ancient things and as tall as the greatest castle. Surrounding that place is a beautiful river, with a shining forest just like this one. It's even better than this little made up place."

The herbalist was even more surprised, "How did you know this was all faked?"

He shrugged again, "I just had a gut feeling." Che. As if that answered anything. They didn't talk again, choosing to walk in silence. At some point, they ended up holding hands again. If only so Lovino could make sure the pirate wouldn't run off to go stare at the damn flowers like the stupid idiot he was, so don't get any dumb ideas!

Still, it was kind of ironic that Nicnevin had a room like this. So far, he had only seen gigantic messes and terrifying décor. This was so…fragile looking. Well, technically it wasn't real. The herbalist knew it was fake the moment he stepped in. No flower is without thoughts, without dreams, unless they were dead.

Soon enough they reached the clearing. Before them, was a great body of water that stretched farther than the eye could see. The sea reflected the sky above, making it seem as that was all there was left, stars and moons. The Italian realized that this scene was an exact replica of what he would see at the beach. Except there was no sand, they were standing at a muddy cliff that ended abruptly into the water. Extending all the way out across this little ocean was a crisscrossing set of wooden walkways. They looked pretty unstable, but it was the only thing they could use to cross.

"I suppose we have no choice but to go forward," Antonio said, more to himself than anything else. He smiled at Lovino all the same, "If we weren't in mortal danger, I would have called this a romantic evening. Wouldn't you?"

"Shut up and get moving bastard! We don't have all day!" he groused, kicking him half-heartedly. He looked back up at the sky worriedly. "And we don't have all night either." What time was it? It was never good to stay when dawn broke, as they said by that time the demon would… he shook his head, cautiously following the pirate on the unstable docks.

They walked quietly, Antonio going first and Lovino right behind him. The entire time they walked, all the pirate did was ramble about stupid things. He acted like nothing was wrong, speaking as easily as he did back at the cottage about those little anecdotes he thought Lovino would like.

"That drinking contest ended in a tie…I think. I'm not sure, since all of us were so out of it. But all _mi amigos_ say Gilbert won. Every time I say we tied, everyone just rolls their eyes and says, 'sure_ Capitán'_. I can't really blame them. Gil is German so he's really good at holding his liquor!"

"Heh, so is drinking a part of the pirate résumé? Because I don't drink, so I guess I can't join your crew," the Italian replied, gazing into the water. They were continuing their game of, let's-bother-Lovino-with-stupid-suggestions-of-becoming-a-pirate.

Antonio stared at him, "You've never drank before?"

"Che, does it look like I want the hangovers my _Nonno_ always ends up with? Fuck no."

The Spaniard laughed, "It's not that bad. But, well, I can make an exception for _mi tomate dulce_~!"

"Hold the fucking phone, I don't want to cure all your hangovers either…bastard," he snapped half-heartedly, not a bit of venom in his voice. Damn, he was losing his touch. But looking at the pirate behind him in the soft, flattering moonlight, he couldn't help but soften up just a tiny bit. Unknown to the herbalist, the pirate was thinking the exact same thing.

"Aw, but all I would need would be for you to kiss it better! Won't you do it, just for me?" Antonio said, stopping to turn around and give him puppy eyes.

He snorted, "You wish, stupid bastard." But all the same, the pirate laughed and Lovino couldn't help but smile too. And then it was back to scowling and staring out into the water. He didn't have the heart to talk anymore, so he let the bastard continue his stupid rambling. Things seemed oddly calm now. He was going to enjoy the peace while it lasted.

Of course something had to go wrong. Things were much too calm. He should have known…should have known that something was off.

Looking in the water, not paying attention to the stupid pirate, he saw a face. It was his face, except it was younger, more innocent. It was him, as a child, so happy and carefree. Behind him was a scene of wildflowers and a quaint little cottage not so different from his own. In the doorway stood his parents, both were alive. They waved at him. Feliciano stuck his head out the window, calling for him to come inside. Before he realized what he was doing, he was kneeling at the water, putting a hand to that image.

Somewhere, a voice was calling to him. Something about not going in…but his mother and father were urging him to come inside. His pretty mother made lunch. He wouldn't get any dessert if he didn't come inside and kept playing around.

He leaned forward. Something grabbed him and he frowned. Why was he being stopped? He was going to turn away to see what was keeping him in place, but his father called him again. If he finished lunch early, they would go fishing together. Yes that would be nice he said. He leaned forward again. But he was pulled even farther away. They were fading…they were fading! He fought to move, kicked at the thing holding him back. Then a hand reached out to him. His mother was offering her hand. He grabbed for it, only for it to disappear. She was getting farther and farther away.

"Mother!" he screamed, and struggled. They ran towards him, screaming his name. He kicked and punched, but he was getting no closer to them. All he could think about was getting to his family. His happy little family, where everything was right and nothing went wrong…

…

* * *

Meanwhile, the unfortunate Spaniard was running. Running from what you may ask? Why, from the gigantic swell of corpses surging across the walkway of course!

Antonio tried to stop him, tried to get the brunet to look away. He didn't know what Lovino was seeing, but down there…all he could see were corpses, emaciated faces stretching out to grab them both. He smashed his halberd into them, trying to see if that would make them stop. But it didn't. Instead, they rose up to strike at him, like some great, decaying snake. "Lovino wake up! Those aren't your parents!" he yelled, trying to knock some sense into the mesmerized herbalist. He paid no heed to the words, his eyes glazed over and his arms outstretched to the wave of dead bodies coming towards them.

The Spaniard cursed, throwing the younger male over his shoulder and running for their lives. There was no end in sight, no shores and no island to reach. A few bodies, some looking suspiciously like his own _familia_ began to climb up the walkway, clawing at his feet. He had no qualms about squashing them underfoot. His family was dead. End of story. He didn't need these ghosts of the past coming at him. And to see his newer crewmates amongst the corpses, their lifeless, rotting bodies charging at him, was just plain insulting. Francis would never wear such an ugly expression, even when dead. Roderich wouldn't be so sloppy. He would be immaculately dressed even in death.

Jesus, if they really wanted to scare him, to make him hesitate, they should have done a better job.

"An…tonio…" an old man that looked like his own father said, reaching out to him. "Please…"

"Get out of my way!" he snarled back, smashing his blade into it. The body flew into the water, sinking to the bottom where it belonged. Another one, this one looking oddly like a mummified Elizabeta, came running at him with a frying pan. He easily blocked the swing, throwing the pan and kicking the corpse into the water. Pitiful. The real Hungarian woman would have smashed his halberd, decaying or not.

"Wake up!" he yelled again to the herbalist, although he knew it was useless. The herbalist continued to struggle, trying to reach out to whatever corpse that he thought was his brother. He felt the walkway shake, and then seem to buck beneath him as if it were alive.

"So you're the one that killed me…Heehee, I'm gonna kill you then~!" a familiar voice said. Looking down, the walkway grew a face…the girl that had been choking Lovino from before. He killed her, he had been sure of it. "**b**Y**E** B**y**e**!**"

Before he knew it, he was being thrown into the air. _Mierda._

Unlike what young Lilou believed, the water did, in fact, hurt when you fell in too fast. The crash knocked the wind out of him, which wasn't exactly the best thing considering he would have needed it. Lovino had gone limp over his shoulder. Opening his eyes, he could see the blurry shapes of the other corpses grabbing at them, dragging them under. But he refused to let go of the young brunet and held on tightly. His lungs were burning, he wasn't sure how much longer he would be able to fight back. Hell, he was lucky to still be conscious at this point.

Just when he thought they were dead, that it was over, he found that the corpses had dragged him somewhere else. Down below, there was a large bubble of light. Wait what? Looking again at the corpses' faces, they seemed to smile kindly at them. Before shoving the two roughly into the bubble.

Light. Air. Life. Antonio coughed repeatedly. All he could do at the moment was lay there, desperately taking air. As soon as he could breathe and the spots from his vision cleared, he got up. Rolling over, he immediately checked Lovino's pulse. He only relaxed when he heard the regular heartbeat and the gentle breathing. "Don't ever scare me like that again, Lovi," he said sadly, brushing the unconscious man's cheek. "But where are we now?" he said aloud, looking around. They were in some meadow. The sun was setting and they were at the edge of some village. He was so lost right now. First they were running for their lives, then the monsters saved them, then they were here. Wherever 'here' was.

He saw a few farmers running into the village. "Hurry up or we're going to miss it!" said an old man. A sandy-haired boy besides him scowled.

"Why don't _you_ help then? The wood isn't going to cart itself!" They broke into a loud argument. Curious, the pirate, after making sure that Lovino wasn't in any mortal danger, walked over to the two.

"Excuse me…" he said, waltzing up to the two men. They kept fighting, not paying attention. "_Perdón_!" he said louder. They didn't even so much as glance or snap at him for bothering them. He attempted to grab the old man's shoulder, who was now yelling at the top of his lungs, to get his attention. But his hand went right through the old man, passing as easily as if he were waving his arm in thin air. "Erm…are we…?" He shook his head. He was pretty sure that if he died he would probably be on fire. In a pot of boiling oil. While people force fed him English food. He shivered.

No, he was probably not dead. So where were they? He decided it would be better to just follow where the crowd was going. Putting the herbalist onto his back, he followed the irritated farmers into the town square.

"Ah…oh no." He grimaced. It was a good thing that Lovino was not awake. Being a witch, he probably would not have liked what they were seeing.

A monk stood on a raised platform in front of the pyre. He stuck his nose into the air, and flared his nostrils as if he was about to sneeze. "We cannot but, with all thankfulness, acknowledge the success which the merciful God has given unto the sedulous and assiduous endeavours of our honourable rulers, to detect the abominable witchcrafts which have been committed in the country, humbly praying, that the discovery of those mysterious and mischievous wickednesses may be perfected…." Blah, blah, blah, righteous church drivel. The pirate rolled his eyes. But the skepticism turned into surprise and confusion. There, tied to the pyre, was a young girl. And it was no ordinary little girl. She had beautiful hair, so fair it was almost white. She glowed with youth and vitality, which at the moment, was being used to plead hopelessly to the crowd. Her face, while young and seemingly innocent, was unmistakable.

"It's her…" he said in horror, looking upon what appeared to be a child version of the very enchantress that brought them to this place. What on earth was going on?

…

* * *

...

Lovino woke up. Was he…dead? He clenched his fists, wiggled his toes. But he couldn't feel them. He had thought he had died the moment his hand touched Feliciano's. Or the moment he touched that corpse. It was only when they managed to touched that he realized what was happening. He cursed again. He had to fall for the trick again, fall and reach for something that was impossible. He felt hot, frustrated tears fall and he clenched his fists. So what now? God he had failed…he had died hadn't he?

He opened his eyes, hissing at the light. The room he was sitting in was so…white. Everything in the room was white, from the walls to the floor to every bit of furniture and even the food placed on the table before him. Looking outside the windows, he could see nothing but a blank canvas. He looked down at himself, finding that he was still wearing his clothes. He was the only dash of color in this room. Was this how it was like to be-?

"Death, the great equalizer. It is believed by men to be the harshest of all the angels, for it discriminates not between age and gender. It is hated and loved by man and animal alike, although they will never truly understand it." Lovino looked up to see the horse-headed demon before him. He was sitting comfortably in the chair across from him, his hands folded on the table. He was dressed completely in black, as if for a funeral.

His mouth went dry. "Are we-"

"I think not. Your slumber is not permanent. The sacrifice saved you. You will awake in due time." The horse waved a hand and a window behind him showed the outside world. There, Lovino was asleep. Antonio was carrying him on his back. "The dead are not as cruel as their deliverer. They took you to safety."

"Wait why?"

The horse cocked its head to the side, "Because you will deliver them. The queen has stolen many souls. They are trapped here. Many have forgotten their true face, leaving them to take the form of whatever you wish to see. They took you here, away from the doll master."

They were both alive…right? He stared at the horse, mind reeling from the influx of information. "But why the fuck are we down there?"

"Memories. There are things you must see to understand the truth. As a wise human once said, 'know thy enemy'. Nicnevin knows nothing. The arrogant queen sees little of her subjects, not knowing the true nature of her betrayers until the final blow is dealt. You will be the last strike. You must defeat her on your own little witch."

"W-wait a second! Why…why the fuck do you even bother? Looks like you can do all the work. Kill her yourself! Why ask for my damn help?" Because he was useless. He was being thrown around like a ragdoll while everyone around him just…

The demon sighed, pouring itself a cup of tea, "I am the servant, in the truest sense now. Little can be done on my part. However, you are alive, human, and free. You are the one human with enough potential to topple the queen's throne."

"Why does everybody say that? I don't even know where to start. Fuck, she's practically invincible!" he snapped, exasperated.

"Mankind is furthest from the possibility of invulnerability. For humans, to be invincible is to be vulnerable. Think boy. When does the hawk lower her claws, to rest in her nest content? When is the hunter to strike to secure his prey?"

"I don't get your goddamn riddles!" Lovino screamed, frustrated, "I just…when she's invincible and vulnerable? I don't…" Then it dawned on him. "Shit…shit you have got to be fucking kidding me…" he said, slumping in his chair.

The horse nodded, "The only true path is one marked with thorns. Be wise. The hawk knows not the ferocity of her prey. The young falcon may become king of the sky yet." He looked up, as if checking some invisible clock, "It is time. The stage is set and the players are here. Be wary, for the queen has seen your heart, your desires. May her kind words bewitch you not, so that we may all live to see another day. I expect nothing less but an acceptable ending from you, Lovino Vargas."

He hesitated for a second. To think, that a demon, of all things would be his greatest ally. He was shifty and creepy and he wasn't sure if he trusted this. Hell, he wasn't sure if he trusted anything in this house anymore. As if reading his thoughts it continued, "Man's enemies are not demons, but human beings like himself. It would be prudent of you to remember this poignant proverb."

"I guess I'd say thanks, but you could have warned about this fucking mess in the first place so I won't," Lovino snapped. Though he wasn't really angry, just tired.

"Goodbye little witch, may we meet again on better days."

"I don't fucking think so. Just cause you aren't eating my face now, doesn't mean you won't do it later bastard!" he yelled, just as the illusionary world shattered around him.

…

* * *

He woke up on the pirate's back, trying to figure out what was happening. He groaned, feeling as if he rammed his head into a wall and Anri helped pile drive him through it. "Ugh…what's…Antonio what's happening?" he groaned. The pirate started, turning his head to smile with relief at him.

"_Dios mio_, you're awake!" the pirate said, his voice warm and terribly tired. "For a while, I thought you wouldn't wake up!" He laughed, as if to reassure himself that yes, Lovino was alive.

"I know…I know…" he replied, sighing. "Let me down idiot, you look like you're about to drop dead." The pirate reluctantly complied and put the herbalist down. His legs were wobbly for a second, and he had to lean on the Spaniard to get his balance again. He heard voices all around them, and he was startled to realize they were in some town, crowded with people. He also noticed that they were like fucking ghosts since the townsfolk seemed to slip right past them. "What the fuck is happening?"

The Spaniard's expression flickered, "I don't know, but I don't think you want to see-"

"Stop please! Please don't do this! I didn't do it! I'm not a demon I swear!" a girl's voice screamed. Her voice was soon drowned out by the jeers and insults of the villagers.

"Liar!"

"You killed my son!"

"Die, demon!"

The girl continued to scream for help, for mercy. Lovino turned away, holding onto the pirate's hand tightly. He moved over, shielding the young Italian from the scene. His eyes burned, he remembered hearing those exact words himself. He peeked past the crowd, beyond the pirate, to see that face…that familiar face.

"It's her?" he whispered to Antonio, not believing his eyes. The pirate nodded grimly.

"There's no mistaking it, I would never forget that face…" he said, his eyes flashing. He seemed conflicted between saying he wanted her to burn and saying he wanted to save her. Because what sane human being could be so cruel as to say an innocent child deserved this? To spit in the girl's face and watch her burn as she screamed and begged for mercy? Animals…each and every one of them.

The girl screamed again, her wails growing in intensity as the priest lit the pyre. Shit…Lovino felt sick, and covered his eyes. Whether it was Nicnevin or not, he couldn't watch. He was shaking, trembling like a leaf. He could see it now…himself sitting on his very own pyre, screaming and begging… Antonio held onto him and he felt himself be shaken out of it. Like a dying man, he clung onto the pirate, hoping his presence would anchor him to reality and away from the past.

Then everything exploded. The sound of blasting concrete and screaming townsfolk assaulted their ears. On an impulse, the pirate covered the herbalist from the explosion, but they weren't hurt. The debris flew right threw them. Although Lovino himself wasn't too sure if that was a good thing as a severed head went flying through them.

When the dust cleared, the two could see Nicnevin on the ground. Her arms and legs had been severely burned, the skin having been peeled away and blackened to the point that they were unrecognizable stumps. In a circle around her, were the splattered remains of whoever had the misfortune of standing too close. Hovering before her was a demon. The body was that of a man, and it had the head of an owl. Behind it was a pair of great black wings, and it wielded a great black saber, with a familiar pentagram inscribed in the blade. Marquis Andras, the great demon of discord, spoke before her.

"You who have summoned me…do you wish to die?" it asked, raising its blade.

The girl sobbed, "I want…I want to live…"

It cocked its head. "Foolish girl. I eat, I do not save."

"I-I…I…" She was no longer able to speak coherently, the pain having overpowered her rational thoughts. The demon looked upon her, not speaking and not moving. The girl moaned and cried, repeating desperate calls for help. It seemed to have come up with some sort of plan. "How about a deal child? I will save you, heal you, but in return, you shall feed me…" It swung its arm, gesturing to the terrified townspeople.

"A-anything…please…make it stop…" she moaned. The demon hooted once before raising a hand. A magic circle swirled over the crumpled girl's body and she rose up. Her wounds were healed and her arms and legs were stronger than ever. She looked down at her body in amazement, getting up shakily.

"Now…feed me." The girl smiled. A sadistic little grin as she ran over to the terrified townsfolk.

"With pleasure!" she yelled, grabbing fully grown men as easily as if they were ragdolls. She threw them to the demon's feet, laughing. She was relishing her newfound powers, finally becoming strong and able to enact her revenge. "Hahahaha! I'll kill you! I'll kill you all! I'm the one in charge now!" she laughed, dragging every man, woman, and child over to the beast sitting in the town square. When she finished, she confronted the demon once more.

"I suppose we're done here, there is no one else to kill," she said happily, still giddy from having her revenge. Her smile immediately dropped and she fell to the ground screaming. Her arms and legs, which had previously been healthy, soon crumpled back into the burned, broken limbs they were before. She screamed and cried, "W-why?! Why I…I did what I was told! Y-you…you…got your meal…" She stammered, her brain turning to mush as the pain returned.

The demon chuckled, "Foolish child. You cannot truly believe that I would be satisfied with just this. Provide me more souls, feed me, and I will let you live, I will sustain your life source." The girl whimpered again from the pain. "But should you ever stop, you shall be reduced to your current state and I will reap your soul."

"That's…that's not what we agreed to!" she yelled, gritting her teeth to hold back another scream. "It's…it's not fair…"

"Life is never fair," the demon said callously. "You know your duty, go reap more souls for me and you shall live." He healed her once more and the girl sat up, significantly more distraught than before. The demon gave her pendant to wear that would take the souls she took from the world and then sent her on her way. The girl walked off, staggering out of town looking more lost than ever.

They stood there in the town square for a while, minds reeling from the awful events that just occurred. Antonio, being Antonio, recovered first. "That doesn't change who she is…what she's done." The herbalist looked back at the pirate. His face was hard, without an ounce of pity.

Lovino agreed but…he…understood. He knew what it was like to feel that way, to be so angry to be driven to the point of murder. He wondered…if Antonio had seen himself what the herbalist had done, would he say the same thing and leave? He shivered.

"Lovino, you're not like her," the pirate said quickly, noticing him slump his shoulders. He grabbed his shoulders, "You're-"

"Oh I beg to differ, I find that the boy is exactly like me." The two of them whirled around to see her. Nicnevin, in the flesh, walking towards them. Despite having seen bits of her gruesome past, she continued to smile. "You understand don't you, my darling witch? I had to do what I could to survive, just like you," she crooned, walking over to them. The Spaniard pushed him back, putting himself between the old witch and the young one.

"Stay away from him," the pirate hissed, brandishing his halberd.

She ignored him, but stopped just where the halberd's point touched her chest. "Lovino, you know don't you? He would never understand. Humans never do," she said, growling at the last part.

"I think you've forgotten that you're human as well, you and Lovino," the pirate snapped back, pushing the witch with the point of his blade.

"Me. Human? Never. As you can see I have transcended beyond such ill labeling. Humans are disgusting creatures, wallowing in their own filth. They are cruel, deceitful, always acting for themselves. They would betray their own brethren should it benefit them." She extended a hand to Lovino, her eyes never leaving his face, "Witches belong with witches Lovino. Stay with me, I swear I will never betray you…I will love you and care for you always."

"Liar," the pirate snarled back, "You'll only use him, hurt him just to save your own skin! You aren't actually believing this, right Lovino?" The herbalist gulped. "Lovi?" the pirate asked uncertainly, glancing at him. The herbalist, still shaking, looked up and nodded.

"He would never understand what it means to be a witch. He will only throw you aside!" She took another threatening step forward, "Would you truly trade the lives of your family, your own kin, your sprites? All for the sake of a single, putrid human?" she asked, looking upon Antonio with disdain. She waved her hand, the entire scene around them collapsed. They now stood on some raised, circular stage, a gigantic pentagram inscribed in its center. There were other circular pillars all about them, and on each sat one of the sprites, unconscious. They were each decomposing into their own respective plants, although without soil or water, they were wilting.

"Anri! Abel! Everyone! Fuck what the hell did you do?!" Lovino yelled, horrified. He staggered away from the pirate, getting a better look at the pillars. He realized they were floating over some sort of abyss. The light only shining from above like one gigantic spotlight. Antonio rounded on the witch.

"What have you done? Release them!" the pirate yelled, looking every bit like the menacing pirate.

The witch laughed, turning the attention back on the herbalist, "Well Lovino? You have a choice. Give me Antonio, join me! And I will set all your little henchmen free. Refuse and I will have no choice but to take him by force." She extended her hand, "Witches belong with witches my dear. Humans…they have caused nothing but pain. All they do is take our happiness, steal it for themselves. But I will give you everything. Everything that the _humans_ have denied us."

"Lovino…" But the pirate didn't say more, only shaking his head to look imploringly at the herbalist. He looked conflicted. He couldn't say to not do it. He didn't want to say he should. Who was the pirate to say about the lives of Lovino's own, precious family?

The young Italian stood there, unsure. His started to back away from them, holding his sides. His eyes darted between the pirate, the witch, and those stupid sprites. Those familiar words echoed in his head, _Man's enemies are not demons, but human beings like himself. _

He thought he could see the horse again, floating in the back, '_The queen has seen your heart, your desires. May her kind words bewitch you not, so that we may all live to see another day.' _

He looked at Antonio, the pirate was worried, but not for himself. He was concerned for him, his lips slightly parted as if ready to give him reassurance, tell him again that he would do all he could to protect him, that everything would be okay. He looked Nicnevin in the eye. The woman was smiling kindly at him; looking upon him with such affection it seemed as if she truly loved him.

He took a deep, shuddering breath. This had to be done. "Nicnevin," he said, his voice surprisingly calm, giving no emotion at all. They all tensed as the herbalist looked up at the two with determined eyes. "You have a deal."

...

* * *

...

**I put Lovino in mortal danger way too often. You know I was torn between traumatizing Lovi and then not. I decided against it. You're welcome. Things will wrap up for this arc (yeah there's another shitty arc coming your way) in the next chapter. As always, I love all your reviews, your favorites, your follows, all of your support is truly what helped me overcome this writer's block. I thanketh all of thee.**

**Oh and P.S., I just realized the numbering for all the other chapters are off. Like when I announce the title of the chappie, I put the number wrong. Oops.**


	11. The Path that Leads to Goodbye

**This took forever. No joke. I just wanna smack my head into the wall. I tried my best. It's probably a really crappy finish but screw it, this is all I could think of so… TAKE IT. I swear this made me lose sleep at night. I'm glad for those of you who stuck around. You're the reason why I go on man…no joke. I heart each and every one of you.**

**Happy labor day to my fellow Americans and happy whatever day of the week it is because I don't know and I don't care anymore. Whee.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own APH**

* * *

**Chapter 11: The Path that Leads to Goodbye**

**...**

The look on Antonio's face nearly broke him.

"Lovino…" he said, "She's lying, can't you see that?" The herbalist looked at the ground, clenching his fists. He chanced a glance at the man's face, struggling to keep his own level. The pirate's expression was unreadable, blank. He just stood there, staring. He looked like he was about to say more, but turned away. The moment he turned away, he was surrounded by black roses. They whipped his arm, forcing him to drop his halberd and they wrapped tightly around him. The vines pulled him up, tying him to a raised a cross made entirely of flora. The thorns bit into his body, but he refused to cry out, keeping his jaw clenched shut.

"I knew you would see reason, darling," Nicnevin said, smiling triumphantly. She stepped forward over to Antonio, brushing a sharp nail across his face.

"Don't you dare call him that," the pirate snapped at her, his acidic green eyes boring holes into her.

She smirked at him, "Hmm, not broken yet? I'll have to change that soon enough…"

Lovino walked towards her with hesitant steps, "What about the others?"

The witch's eyes twitched at being interrupted but she indulged the boy nonetheless. "My dear, we can't release them now, it's far too dangerous! We must get on with the ceremony, before dawn breaks." She snapped her fingers and a piece of red chalk and a small black book appeared. "Be a dear and draw the circle in front of the sacrifice. It's absolutely necessary if this is to be done properly." Her eyes seemed to drill into his skull, examining his thoughts. He forced himself to be meek, to be sad and defeated; to be all of the things he was most certainly not. She passed him by.

"Y-yeah, I got it," he murmured quietly, taking the book and chalk in his shaking hands. The book flipped itself to the correct page, revealing a protective circle for demon summoning rituals such as this one. He kneeled down, making a circle large enough for the conjurer. He did as he was asked and followed the steps. As he did that, Nicnevin continued to mock the pirate, talking as if Lovino wasn't even there.

"I told you didn't I? Did you really think that he was ever yours?" the witch taunted, as she drew the ancient magic into the air with her hand. She was preparing him, checking him over so that he may be a proper sacrifice.

If Antonio could, he would have stabbed this bitch in the face. But seeing as he was a bit tied up, he would have to be content with imagining it. For now. The pirate smiled coldly, "He cared for me more than he ever would for you. So yes, he is more mine than yours."

Her fingers twitched. "Yours? He was never anyone's but mine. I cared for him, provided for him, took him in as my own when none would. And what have you done? Take the boy and lead him astray with lies. How long do you think it would take before you tired of his body?" she said, sneering. The herbalist tensed and fumbled for the chalk for a bit. It took him several tries before he was able to make a straight line again.

"I would never leave him. But I suppose such an idea is too hard for someone like you to understand," Antonio replied, his voice patronizing.

The witch scoffed then laughed, "Listen to yourself! Even you can't believe those empty declarations. Humans really are the most pitiful of creatures, spewing lies till the very end in hopes that such pretty words will save their skin." Yet her eyes turned dark, sharp at the words. The herbalist wondered if the Spaniard's words had hit too close to home.

"Oh it's no lie," Antonio continued, smirking, "Don't tell me that the great witch is jealous that a witch not herself is actually loved?" The herbalist turned around at that. He dropped his chalk before quickly grabbing it again and turning around. Damn it. Just a little longer… Lovino focused on his job, slowly but surely removing the loose stone from its place.

Nicnevin's smile faltered, it seemed to freeze in place for a minute, before relaxing. When she spoke again, her voice was dripping with false sympathy, "Antonio, Antonio," she tutted, "What a fool, so misguided. Your so-called 'love' is nothing but pity! I do applaud you for forcing yourself to believe in such an illusion, but it is a simple truth that you cannot love a witch. We are beings far beyond your understanding and your reach. A mere human – no – an animal would not be able to do such a thing," She sounded almost bitter at the last part, her smile almost twisting into a grimace.

Meanwhile, Nicnevin's mouth contorted into a frown when the pirate laughed. He laughed and laughed. And then he sneered at her, speaking condescendingly, "Is that what you believe? Oh please keep trying to convince yourself of that and go on your merry way. But you and I both know that it's true you're the one living a lie." Lovino continued to draw, writing as quickly as he could.

The woman smiled, her mouth unnervingly wide, "Filthy pig. You know not of what you speak. Silence yourself before I cut out your tongue." She conjured a spear, pointing the tip of it to his cheek. He didn't stop.

"You know what I see? You're just a sad, broken old woman who can't understand why no one loves you. You're jealous because Lovino is loved even when he's a witch." The young Italian felt his heart beat a little faster at that.

The tip of the witch's spear began to dig into his cheek. She deliberately dragged the point across his cheek, "I have no use for love, impertinent little beast. I have no need for jealously, for what am I to envy from a small, pitiful boy who's so weak he can't even say a spell without dropping? I have power, wealth, beauty, everything that this world treasures above all else."

Antonio kept talking, he was on a roll. He completely ignored her little speech, continuing on as if he hadn't been interrupted. "And you want to bring him down with you to feel better about yourself because somehow, it'll ease the pain. If anyone's the real witch to be pitied, it's you," he finished. Nicnevin was steaming. The short brunet could feel her malevolent aura flowing out of her in waves.

She was scowling, her eyes were livid. But quickly, that expression was replaced with that of sadistic glee. "Pity me?" She laughed long and hard. She drew away an imaginary tear from her eye, "I knew it. You may yell at the dog until your face is blue, but it will never truly understand your words," she said, her voice booming and sending waves of power all over the room. "I have no need for love or admiration from mere animals. Especially if those animals are as disgustingly savage as you."

The pirate snorted, "_Sandeces. _I'm not the one who kills and kidnaps innocent people to serve the Devil."

She narrowed her eyes into crescents, her smile growing so wide it was like a thin cut across her entire face. "Oh you know what I mean, Antonio~! You couldn't have possibly forgotten João Escritor and his lovely wife and child?"

The response was almost immediate. "I don't know who you're talking about. Perhaps more of your victims?" he scoffed, but by the way he stiffened up it was clear that he knew exactly what she was talking about.

"João Escritor, a knight for the Church. He killed a good deal of people, the presumed reason being because he was obsessed with an old zealot's impassioned speeches. But we know better don't we?"

Antonio took a moment, eyes darkening and a frown on his lips before he spoke, "Nicnevin, a crazy witch sitting in the woods. She's killed thousands of innocents, summoned devils, and is a soul-sucking, malignant tyrant of a bitch. The presumed reason because she's a sociopath deprived of love. Anything new you wish to tell me?" the pirate mocked. The witch's eyes darkened, her grin finally beginning to twitch downwards.

"You are the perfect example of the most wretched humans. You call me a murderer? Such hypocrisy. Look upon yourself and see if you are clean," she hissed, poking him harshly in the chest. "You have spilled innocent blood. I wonder how pure little Lovino will act once he sees-!" She stopped abruptly at the noise. It was loud scraping of metal against stone. The witch whirled around while the pirate craned his neck to see what was happening. The herbalist was rubbing something on the ground furiously before turning back to see them, horrified.

"I-uh-I messed up and I-" The witch would hear none of his pleas. She stepped forward, irritated and stared down at the circle. In the center of the circle where her mark should have been drawn to balance her power, she saw a dusty pentagram, hastily covered up with dust. It was clear that the boy had tried to scrape off some dust and grime to hide it. Fool. She walked over, stepping and effectively removing the young herbalist's pentagram. She didn't even notice how the stone beneath her foot was loose.

She chuckled darkly, pinning the frozen Italian with a dark stare, "Oh Lovino…you truly do know how to amuse me…" The brunet didn't even have time to brace himself for the blow. She slapped him hard enough to throw him to the ground. He held in a cry of pain when she kicked him away from the circle.

"Bitch!" the pirate cursed, struggling at his bonds. "Is this what you do? So cowardly as to hurt those who can't fight back?" She ignored him, knowing it would rile his feathers.

"Oh my mischievous little witch, you dared to try to trick me?" she continued, "You decided to draw your own symbol and hope that the conjuring would be done under your jurisdiction, therefore putting me at risk as sacrifice rather than the pig. Clever boy," she said, her voice sounding oddly approving.

She used her spear to draw her own mark, a decorative heptagram, in the center. "A pity that you've chosen to roll amongst pigs instead of rule with your own kind."

Groaning, the herbalist picked himself up. He pulled out his dagger and pointed it at her. "I'd rather die than be stuck with you!" Lovino snapped, his hands shaking.

She looked down upon him with amusement…and pity? It was hard to tell, but the Italian thought he saw a bit of sorrow in her eyes. It disappeared soon enough and she raised a hand. "Very well then, it would be far too cruel to separate you. If you wish to be with this beast, then you may die with him."

With a wave her hand, Lovino felt the wind get knocked out of him as he was thrown to the ground at Antonio's feet. The Spaniard struggled against his bonds, absolutely furious. "Lovino! _Dios,_ I'm going to kill her, I'm going to kill her," he hissed, all while pulling forward. The thorns were biting deeply into his skin, leaving painful prick marks all over, but he didn't care one bit. _Anyone who dared touch his Lovi needed to die._

"Ugh…fuck that hurt," the Italian groaned, getting up slowly. It felt as if he had been smashed and pounded by the doll master again, except with twice the amount of force. He was pretty sure something was broken in there somewhere, probably a rib.

"Come my subjects! Come to me, for the feast awaits!" Nicnevin called, the circle glowing purple and slowly forming a protective bubble around the conjurer. Loud screeches emanated from below amongst the scrabbling and flapping from the demons crawling up the pillars. Imps. They were amongst the lowest class of demon, but that didn't make them any less dangerous. He could see them, their hovering just beyond the pillar's edge, their red eyes glowing in the dark, their fangs glistening. The witch laughed, raising her spear to slit her wrist and allow the blood to complete the ceremony.

Well…fuck his bruised and broken ribs right?

"Lovino…" Looking up, the herbalist watched as the color seemed to drain from the pirate's face, "Lovino you have to get away, you-"

"I'm not going anywhere bastard!" the herbalist managed to get out, holding his injured torso before forcing himself onto his feet.

Ignoring Antonio's cries and warnings, he forced himself to run at Nicnevin. As the spear tip just broke the witch's skin, Lovino rammed into her. The woman grunted, stepping forward and away from the circle. Her lips turned down into a frown and she turned to shove the brat out of her way. Then she snarled.

"You little bastard."

The young brunet smiled grimly, despite having used his own dagger to stab right through his left hand. "Well fuck you too." With a pained yell, he ripped out Lukas' dagger from his palm, letting the blood spill all over the circle. The red liquid fell upon its center, dissolving the chalk heptagram and the loose stone it lay upon. There, underneath that loose stone was a bloody pentagram.

The entire time, while the witch and the pirate traded words, the herbalist had chipped away the center space of the circle. Upon removing the stone, he gingerly drew his own mark in the center in blood. He covered it quickly and put back the missing stone, using chalk to draw his mark again and hopefully distract her from what lay underneath. The scrape had not been entirely an accident.

The entire circle shined, going from purple to red. These magic circles were pretty picky. Blood was stronger than chalk, so it was Lovino's blood that wrote the spell and drew the demons. But at the same time, Nicnevin fueled the magic, thus causing confusion as to who was the true conjurer and making the spell flub. While it had worked long enough to summon the demons, it didn't hold long enough to actually set the sacrifice.

Or set the conjurer's protection.

"Do you have any idea what you have done?" the witch asked her voice terrifyingly calm. She whipped out her spear, "Fool of a boy!" she charged at him. Being small and swift, the herbalist ducked out of the way.

But the Italian was far from harm, as he ducked to avoid an imp from tearing into his face.

With the spell flubbing and with so much blood given, the magic allowed many of these lower-class demons to fill the area. Lovino managed to kick some out of the way, avoiding them expertly.

Nicnevin, however, was not so lucky. Several imps came running right into her, biting deeply into her arms, her legs. She didn't so much as flinch. "Remove your fangs, foolish dogs!" she spat, swinging them away. Thank goodness that these guys were angrier at her, now that she was killing them off. She served as enough of a distraction for the Italian to come back to the restrained pirate.

"Lovino, don't just stand there, run!" the pirate yelled as more imps followed him.

But the herbalist refused to budge, clinging to the cross. "I'm not going anywhere asshole!" Several imps were still on his tail, baring their fangs and screeching. He used his dagger to throw some off, pushing them over the edge.

Meanwhile, the pillar began to shake, almost beginning to sink from the sudden weight grabbing the bottom. A large clawed hand reached over the edge, digging its nails into the platform. The force ended up tilting them, pulling them and nearly sliding them all off the edge. Lovino clung to Antonio's cross while Nicnevin stabbed her spear into the ground, growling as she swatted away the imps. The hand in the pillar was soon followed by another that clung to the other side, right behind Antonio's cross and setting the platform straight again.

Finally getting his footing back, the herbalist gritted his teeth. "Horse bastard, you better fucking kowtow to me when this is all over," Lovino growled, pulling back his hand to punch straight through the cross. It hurt like hell. "Fuck! Just fucking give up already!" he yelled out loud to the roses. The Spaniard just looked at him like he had lost his mind. And he supposed in some way, he had. The punch hurt like hell, but the control would hurt like heaven crushing hell.

He was crazy. Really crazy for going through all this because of one, infuriating pirate.

Lovino screamed, ripping away his arm from the thorns. But surrounding his fist was a swirling mass of roses and vines. He whipped them away from Antonio, swirling the bulbous mass in the air and forcing them to release the pirate. The entire mass yielded to his will, allowing itself to be pulled from the pillar. He slammed the thorny bramble into one of the demon's hands embedded in the ground. "Eat that fucker!"

An avian screech followed, and the claws subsequently pulled itself out of the ground. With one hand remaining, the platform tilted again. This time, exhausted, Lovino fell over, rolling helplessly down the platform.

"_Mierda!_" the pirate cursed, grabbing the herbalist as the platform nearly went sideways. He saw his sliding halberd, wondering how the hell it managed to stay intact. He kicked it up to himself with his foot and grabbed it. He jammed it into the ground, using it to halt their descent. "_Dios mio_, take a fucking hike damn it!" Antonio yelled at the clawed hand grabbing at the platform. It roared, as if in response and its veined hands seemed to cling even tighter. It was all he could see of the demon - its hands - and he sincerely hoped they wouldn't get to see the rest.

"He won't leave you imbecile!" the witch snapped at him. The pirate whipped his head over to look at Nicnevin, in a similar situation to them not too far away. He almost laughed. To think, the almighty god of witches was just as helpless as them. "He must be paid, he requires the sacrifice!" She used one arm to point at them, drawing a magical circle in the air. Okay, not funny anymore. "And I shall give it to him. Lord of Discord, accept my offering!" Light crackled around the woman as she charged her spell. Shit.

Lovino woke up from the sound, looking around and seeing his own legs dangle over the edge. "Fuck me…" he groaned, pulling back his injured fist to use his power once more. He didn't have that much juice left in him, so this better fucking count. He smashed his hand into the stone. He screamed at the pain. Just as the lightning spell began to singe the very hairs on their heads, the pillar exploded.

Instead of crumbling away, large roots and vines blew the stones outward, stopping the attack. It also managed to throw the demon's last hand off. With a loud screech, it fell. The platform – or what was left of it – righted itself. The original stone foundation was bursting from the seams with black roses running rampant.

Nicnevin may have been powerful, but she just didn't have the same affinity Lovino had with flora. She couldn't stop the onslaught and was forced to face the barrage of prickly thorns. As for Lovino and Antonio, instead of being scratched up by the roses, the surrounding flowers used their upturned buds to cushion the two humans. With the flowers hovering over them protectively, the pirate was allowed to catch his breath.

"Lovino! Please, _mi amor_, just hang in there!" he said, panicking. The Italian looked so pale, so ill. His hand was a mess, swollen and covered in blood. A great deal of skin had been scraped off of his hand and Antonio was pretty sure a few knuckles had been broken. He didn't touch it, for fear of making it worse. He gently lifted the fragile brunet into his arms, checking him over. He was sweating and whimpering. Aside from his hand, there didn't seem to be any other pressing injuries.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of this. I'll protect you, just rest. You've done enough," he said, somehow finding the strength to smile.

The herbalist's eyes flickered at him. Even in his pain-induced daze he managed to curse at him. "Idiot bastard…"

The pirate kissed him on the forehead, "I'm sure your little friends will protect you," he whispered, before gently placing his head back down on the bed of flowers.

He grabbed his halberd, which still had somehow made it through all of this without bearing a single scratch. "I swear, you're the best weapon in the entire world," Antonio said aloud to it. The vines made way for him, as he stepped out of the protective bubble and made ready to face the woman who started it all.

Nicnevin was entangled in a few of the vines, but they were soon ripped away. When her eyes landed upon the pirate, she growled. But soon enough, it was replaced by a smile that made even Antonio flinch. "I will kill you. I will kill both of you!" she screamed, before cackling madly. She tore at him, hefting her spear overhead and slashing downwards. He soon dodged, sidestepping and following with a swing of his own.

He wore a smile of his own, not caring anymore about any of his previous inhibitions. "I've been waiting to do this all day!" He feinted to the side before whipping the halberd forward to leave a nasty gash on her shoulder.

She pulled away, swinging her spear up to meet his blade. She swung past his jab forward, sliding the blade across the handle of his halberd. He spun away, kicking at her spear and forcing it into the ground. He flipped the halberd, swinging it towards her only for the woman to duck and roll away past, kicking him in the stomach to force him off her spear. They backed away, taking a breath before clashing again.

For a while they were at an impasse in this deadly dance of death. They spun and slashed, charged and jabbed. It seemed as though they were evenly matched.

And then Antonio made a mistake. He accidentally followed a feint, leaving one side painfully open. The witch's eyes smiled in triumph and she swung her spear towards him.

Antonio swung his halberd, desperately trying to stop the blow. Shit he wouldn't be fast enough. He tensed, dropping to the ground in a sad attempt to dodge.

It wasn't necessary. "Antonio get your fucking ass off the ground!"

The pirate's eyes snapped open and he stood up. The witch was snarling curses at the ivy and rosemary wrapped around her arm. It seemed like she would break free, until a bushel of orchids grew from the ground to hold her down. At her ankles, several veins of aconite held her down. But what surprised him most was that it wasn't Abel who cried out to him, it was Anri, who was currently holding back the witch, her arms wrapped tightly around her waist.

"Antonio move! Hurry, the necklace!" the chrysanthemum yelled, grimacing as the witch tried to throw her off. Oh…that's right…from the memory. She needed that necklace didn't she?

"Damned flower, you will burn! I will ensure your species extinction!" Nicnevin cursed. She was spraying spells off of her person, burning the plants. But they didn't let go.

"Empty promises for empty humans!" the sprite screamed back.

Well, Antonio wasn't going to gape forever now was he? He stepped forward, slashing upwards and catching the glowing pendant. The witch lunged forward, but was again held back by a persistent Anri. "Get rid of it!"

"On it!" the Spaniard replied, grabbing the pendant at the end of his blade and deftly throwing it over the edge.

"Stop! Fool, you'll doom us all! Let go of me! Unhand me I say!" she yelled, far more desperately than before. At last, she burned completely through the thick vines surrounding her and she whirled around to stab Anri through the chest. She cried out and fell backwards. The witch raised her spear to finish the job, but Antonio wouldn't let her. He stepped forward again, and slashed twice, an X mark forming on her back. She halted. But Anri fell apart nonetheless, in a burst of tiny little chrysanthemums.

"Witch…I'll be the one killing you today!" the pirate declared, ready to shove his halberd straight through her damned chest.

But that sound…that awful, awful sound, echoed up to them and threw the Spaniard away from finishing her. It was a shriek, mixed with the awful caws of an angry flock of birds and the agonizing, almost inhuman screams of a dying man. At that moment, Nicnevin screamed as well. Antonio watched in horror as the woman dropped to her knees, her arms and legs were being mutilated before his eyes. The skin began to redden, and peel away, eventually revealing bone and tissue that soon turned black. It continued to travel up her arms, leaving nothing behind but charred bone and viscous, puddles of pus.

She screamed again and again, her eyes going red and her voice beginning to crack, sounding more and more bird-like. Eventually the cries stopped, and she lay there on the ground, motionless. It was pretty pitiful looking, to see one so great (although no less an evil bitch) and to see them be reduced to so low, so easily. He walked slowly forward, stopping the witch lay and he gingerly lifted his blade. "This is the end. Perhaps you'll find freedom in the afterlife," the pirate said solemnly.

He was about to drop his blade upon her skull, when the woman laughed. Her eyes bulged, almost coming out of her sockets, and her stump of a hand reached out to him. "Fool…fool! You thought…you thought that I was under _his _control?" The pirate put as much weight as he could onto the blade, but it wouldn't budge. In fact, he couldn't even move. The moment she opened her mouth, he found himself completely paralyzed. "Ignorant pig!" she cackled madly, sitting herself up, "Did you think I was so dull as to not search for an escape?! I am in control! I always have been! I have bound others, other to be my hands, my legs!"

She stood somehow, even with her legs nearly burnt to nothing but bone. "He isn't my master! I am his!" She laughed maniacally, and the Spaniard was blown back by the force of her magic. Groaning, he pushed himself onto his knees, only to gape at Nicnevin. She summoned it, the demon of the mirror. And instead of sending it to attack him, she knocked it down to the ground.

He watched in shock and disgust as she knelt on the ground, consuming the very flesh of the demon of discord. It lay there, staring unblinkingly at him, as the woman continued to hungrily rip away the elastic tendons from what was left of its neck and head. The air around her began to crackle with energy as she ate, her eyes grew even darker and her hair floated around her as if she were underwater. She seemed…possessed…as if her entire purpose in life was to eat that…thing in her hands.

"Stop!" he yelled, moving forward to end her before he could do anything else, but was held back by a gentle hand. "L-Lovi-?"

"Stay down idiot!" the herbalist snapped, pulling him behind a clump of vines as a bits of discharged energy came shooting away from the mad witch. The pirate jumped upon seeing the place that he occupied just moments before be incinerated. More flashes followed that one, but they were safe behind the wall of roses. Antonio turned to thank Lovino, but he just whacked him when he tried.

The herbalist was pissed. It was only to be expected when you woke up and the first thing you saw was a woman eating the meat off of and owl-headed demon. The herbalist wished he could have puked. And not just from watching that. His head was killing him and the room wouldn't stop spinning. His entire left arm felt numb, dead. God it hurt so much. He wanted to sleep, but he couldn't let exhaustion take him again unless he wanted to end up dead. "We need…we need to offer her. If we give her up, then this place will fall apart, we'll be free!" he explained, half asleep.

The pirate wrapped a supportive arm around the exhausted herbalist, "Lovino, you need-"

"I'm the only one that can summon them here. The smell of my blood should bring them here, just need to…to get my knife and get to the circle…" He leaned his head onto the pirate's shoulders, nearly falling forward.

The pirate peeked over the side to see the witch, who was almost done eating the owl's skull. "If it's blood you need, then I have a better idea," Antonio said, staring at some of the thorns thoughtfully. "Lovino, do you trust me?"

What kind of question was that? "Bastard…Of course I fucking trust you," the herbalist murmured.

"Then I need you to do this for me…"

The herbalist listened with tired ears. He didn't even bother arguing with the half-assed idea. Just as the words left Antonio's lips, a great bang erupted from behind them. They ducked, Antonio holding Lovino and shielding him while the young herbalist subconsciously brought the roses to come closer.

A great circle of the plants had been reduced to ash at the explosion. And in its center, was a mockery of a human being. Nicnevin's beautiful face was gone, replaced with the deformed beak of an owl and the misshapen eyes of flies. Her fair hair all fell down, replaced by a white protruding skull with ram's horns on either side. Her body was stripped of clothing, leaving nothing but the bony body of a decaying woman, covered in ancient, evil sigils. She stretched a hand towards them, her fingers extending to about half a meter and razor sharp.

She screamed at them, no longer having the ability to speak.

"Be careful bas- Antonio!" Lovino hissed, squeezing the other's hand.

The Spaniard smiled, brighter than ever, "Of course, _mi querido_." He rolled out of their hiding place, being sure to get away to let the herbalist do his part.

The pirate whistled, gathering her attention. He would have to be careful, now that he didn't have his halberd. "How the mighty have fallen! And you call me the beast?" he said, gesturing to her mockingly. It screeched at him and charged.

He dodged her claws, running. It was all he really could do at the moment. It was just so fast that he could barely keep up with its movements. Until he saw the pattern. The transformation must have mangled her brain, because her moves, while swift, soon became very, very predictable. God if the woman had retained her mind through the change Antonio was quite sure he would have died within a few seconds. But this…this was doable.

"What's wrong? I thought I'd go easy on you and drop my blade, but you can't even lay a scratch!" he taunted, narrowly dodging another swipe to the face. It screeched at him again and again, growing more frustrated.

Underneath the sneering visage was worry. He was slowly being pushed to the edge… _C'mon Lovino…I know you can do it._

…

He couldn't do it. He didn't care what Antonio said about him, this was never, ever, in a million, bajillion years ever going to work. He moved as quietly as possible, searching for the center of the pillar where the magic circle was drawn. All while dragging along that stupid halberd. Fuck, how did the bastard even hold this thing? It was so fucking heavy! And yet the asshole just swung it around like it was a goddamn rapier. Shit, just thinking about it made him angry. But he supposed he could blow up in the pirate's face later when they weren't in mortal peril.

After tripping a couple of times he did manage to find the circle and he cleared away some of the plants covering it. It was no longer a heptagram, but a pentagram that glowed a soft purple, with bits of rid surging through it. It felt strangely comforting, unlike the repulsive aura Nicnevin's magic would give off. He stabbed the halberd in the center, focusing his energy. He didn't bother trying to take the will of the plants anymore. It was draining and painful for the both of them. He had only used it once before, and he almost regretted not doing it more often to build up some sort of stamina. Note the word, almost.

"Hey guys, look I know I've been a dick but I need…I need your help." They sneered at him. Why help him when he could so clearly make them? Pretentious assholes. But he continued to plead with them, "Suck it up you whiny bitches." Okay, maybe that wasn't exactly heartfelt pleading.

"Do you want to be fucking stuck in there again or get burned to pieces? Cause that's what the bitch'll do if you don't help me. Now do we have a fucking deal or what?" They muttered angrily amongst themselves.

It felt like an eternity for them to finally agree. Normally, the herbalist liked flowers, never thought he'd meet ones he didn't like. He stood corrected.

"C'mon, move your asses, I need a fucking crossbow not a big-ass flower mansion!" he hissed. They snarled back, but moved faster. Shit, Antonio wasn't looking so hot. He was sweating, obviously exhausted from having to dodge the monster so much without a single break.

In a couple more seconds, they finished. Lovino took a deep breath. "Hey bitch-face! Nicnevin! Get your fucking ass over here, I'm the one you want! I'm the one that messed up everything for you!" Just as the pirate was trapped at the edge, the witch stopped. It looked around, eyes narrowing on the young herbalist. Anger. Rage. For a split second, the Italian contemplated jumping off the edge, his mind screaming in fear for him to get away…die before she got to him. But he stood his ground; whether out of stupid courage or fear he wasn't really sure.

But it didn't matter, the demon witch changed targets and charged at the young brunet.

It ran at Lovino, its beak wide open, revealing a large amount of razor sharp teeth. "Yeah that's right, motherfucker, keep on running," he said quietly, before signaling the flowers to shoot. The halberd was thrown straight into the air with a loud boom. The witch looked up, distracted by the noise.

Its claws were just about to stab the young brunet right through the throat, when it felt pain. A sharp stab to the throat. It was not a debilitating wound, just a mere annoyance, a hindrance. Its eyes swiveled, eventually rolling all the way to the back of its head to see its attacker. The pirate stood there, the herbalist's dagger in his hands.

It screeched when he twisted the dagger and shoved it to the ground. He quickly ripped out the dagger, tackling the young herbalist to the side as the halberd came crashing back down to impale the demon witch and anchor it to the ground. It screamed. Now that had hurt. It looked at it, noticing the bloody pentagram on the blade and on the ground. But now the magic circle was filled with a witch's blood, a demon witch's blood, but precious magical liquid all the same.

"Oi! Dinner time! You want to be free right! Well take it! She's all yours!" Lovino yelled, aiming his voice towards the thing at the bottom of the abyss. It growled and roared again, before grabbing the pillar once more. They were more prepared, nestling themselves securely in the vines as they waited for the demon to arise.

Looking up they saw the true demon rear its head…

Um…more like appear without a head. It was only a body, with black, broken wings on its back that were large enough to wrap around all six pillars. Its head bled with black blood and when it leaned forward, a whole pool of it dropped, burning away stone and flowers.

"This is my offering! Now fucking take it and go back to hell!" the herbalist yelled again, clinging to the Spaniard for support. It stood there, for a while, unmoving before slowly speaking, even without its head.

_You have my thanks, little Witch of Sicily. _

Then it picked up the remnants of Nicnevin, pulling the body off of the halberd as if it were stuck on a toothpick and slowly retreating back to the underworld. The witch demon screamed and writhed in the monster's grasp, but the deed was done.

Just before it disappeared over the edge, it ripped its own beak off, revealing a skinless mouth that screamed and cursed them. "Filthy pigs, I curse you to suffer as I have suffered!" it shrieked, before finally disappearing into the abyss.

And then silence.

"Oh my fucking god it's over," the Italian sighed, falling onto his rear. The pirate followed suit, incredibly exhausted.

"Yeah…for a while I was scared-"

"You? Scared?" the herbalist snorted, "I doubt that. You looked like you were having the time of your life." He grimaced, thinking back to the crazed expression the pirate was making before.

The Spaniard sighed. "Just because I'm a bit…overwhelming-"

"That's an understatement."

"-doesn't mean I don't have fears too." And then then the guy leaned in real close, "I was scared that I would lose you. When you passed out on me, I was absolutely terrified."

He really wished he could just punch the bastard instead of flush like a girl. "O-Oh? Well, that's nice, n-now back the fuck up." Of course he didn't.

The pirate's gaze became even more intense, as he leaned in so close their noses were almost touching, "Lovino, I-"

The whole place shook and there was a loud crashing sound, like glass breaking. "Shit, can't we get a break longer than five fucking seconds!"

"Technically, Lovi, it was longer than that."

"Shut the fuck up!"

They fell over, holding onto the plants as the whole place began to shake. Looking above them, they saw the darkness above them crack, white light seeping through. Antonio grabbed the smaller male, holding him close against his chest and dropping to the ground, as the pillar beneath them began to crumble.

"Shit, the others!" Lovino cried out, watching as the rest of the pillars crumbled, the flower sprites fell with them. But they didn't have much time to do anything about it, as their own pillar fell apart from beneath them. Soon enough, they were falling as well, holding onto each other tightly and screaming.

The world crackled all about them, the darkness shattering above and below them like glass. The broken shards tumbled towards them, leaving the herbalist to fear for their lives. They wouldn't have time to go splat, they would be impaled before they even touched the goddamn ground.

...

* * *

...

"Okay I've got to be dead now," the herbalist said, squinting as he found himself in the white room again. Looking around, he saw that instead of a one-on-one dining table, he was sitting at the head of a long table. In the other chairs sat the sprites and Antonio, all unconscious and slumped in their seats. There were others, strange people he didn't recognize who were awake and laughing.

The scene was strikingly familiar to the one back on his fourteenth birthday, but it was less sinister, more light-hearted. And these people looked real, not wearing fake, doll smiles or hiding an ugly piece of madness. Just sincere smiles, genuine laughter.

"I do suggest the wine, antique and quite rare." Lovino turned his head to see the horse-headed demon standing beside him, holding a bottle.

Thinking himself to be dead, he shrugged, "What the hell?"

As Orobas poured the wine, Lovino asked him what he was doing in purgatory and if the land of judgment was always so nice. The demon snorted.

"Hey, s-shut up!" the herbalist snapped, turning red.

It sighed, "No, child you are not dead. Consider it a debt repaid in full."

"Then where the fuck-"

"In the space I own. These so-called 'humans' here are just souls passing through. Your soul, and your allies' souls, your time here is ephemeral. It shall last so long as the space - an infinite loop as your companion once called it - that once belonged to Nicnevin has died." It tilted its head to stare at him, red eyes still blazing. "For years we have lain under her thumb and now we are free, to be judged to make for heaven or to wander the earth as we please. The humans you have freed are particularly grateful, their young bodies having woken up from their deep slumber."

"Whoa, whoa wait, humans? How many of them did she take? I thought she used most of them for sacrifices," the brunet asked, confused.

The demon looked at him blankly, "She used them for her host, for her servants and for herself. Beyond that I cannot say, it is something too cruel to say to one so…naïve and pure."

The Italian spluttered and opened his mouth to protest but decided against it. The horse bastard was actually trying to be nice. If he thought it was icky than damn it must be bad. So he sat back down again and waited.

"All is well, those she has entrapped are free. I knew you would do well, young witch," the horse hummed approvingly. But the herbalist felt far from proud. Going back to what he saw, he just felt…terrified, disgusted…he just wanted to go home and forget this all ever happened. And maybe finally get a good night's rest for Christ's sake.

"Thank God it's finally over though, I don't want to go through that ever again," the young brunet sighed, feeling more worn out than ever before.

It stared at him for a long time, as if contemplating the answer and wondering if the herbalist would like the words he offered. It shrugged, "She is gone, but be wary, a witch's grudge cannot be so easily dismissed."

The human paled, "So what now? What the fuck, it's not done? I've got to deal with that now too?" Because God couldn't be that cruel….could he?

The demon shook its head, "Tis a temporary problem, but it will be a trial. You have many, many more trials that await you young witch. Beware the sun that rises from the east!"

"Oh no, you're not getting away this time! Tell me the truth - just give me a straight answer for once goddammit!" he yelled, reaching out to the grab the rapidly disappearing demon.

It gave him what was presumed to be a horse's smile, although it just looked like a snarl with its teeth bared at him like that. "You have completed one difficult trial, the witch is dead. I am sure you will finish the rest. Fear not child. For our paths have not truly departed…perhaps we will meet again someday…"

The world began to fade again, less destructive than before but still melting away just as quickly. "No stop! Wait! Bastard get back here!" And then he was falling.

Again.

_God, I hate that bastard_.

…

...

Shit and what was with all that yelling? Jesus it's not like he was…

"-not breathing!"

"Do something!"

"Here, move, let me do it-"

"You!? I'd rather-"

"Shut up and let him do it!"

Wait do what now? The voices above him were slightly muffled, like he was underwater. And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to move, hell he couldn't even open his eyes. He struggled to do something, anything, but nothing seemed to work. His left hand, the hand he had stabbed, felt all tingly and numb. He feared that he would lose it should he not treat it soon. Damn, he never really thought things through did he? The worried voices returned. He was vaguely aware of an odd pressure on his chest. What the hell were they doing? He was tired of being kept in the dark. Literally.

God if he turned out to be dead after all that horse was really going to fucking get it…

He jerked awake when he felt a foreign pressure on his lips. Well, it wasn't so much the lip-on-lip contact as it was the fucking blowing. He grabbed onto the person on top of him, trying to anchor himself to reality. He squinted at first with the sudden light, but his eyes adjusted pretty quickly. And from what he saw, he kind of wished he hadn't woken up. It was a little bit before dawn and they were sitting in some grassy field. All the sprites were surrounding him, staring at him in concern, while the very bastard pirate himself was holding him.

He realized he was laying down on someone's lap…Anri's to be precise. The other sprites surrounded him: Abel and Feliks on his right, Govert at his feet, and Michelle and Antonio on his left. They were in a field of tall wild grasses and daisies. They were still in the clearing where Nicnevin's castle…where the castle used to be. It must have disappeared the moment she died…One would think that the idiots would be jumping for joy or something now that she was gone. But everyone was just…gaping at him, not talking and not moving – just staring. "What the fuck are you guys staring at?" he snapped, when a good minute had passed. Then everyone simply charged at him.

"Bubby!"

"Cici!"

"Fucking brat."

Everyone grabbed at him, Antonio getting first dibs and wrapping his arms around his waist and snuggling into his shoulder. "I thought I'd lost you…" he whispered, his voice so painfully sad that Lovino didn't have the heart to snap at him. Govert and Michelle were wailing, clinging to his arms and legs. Feliks was sprawled over them, hugging the entire bundle of them. Anri, however, seemed to take his supposed moment of death the hardest and was putting her forehead against his, her tears beginning to drop on his own cheeks.

"We were so scared Cici…don't ever, ever do that again," she murmured, smiling and crying at the same time.

"Like I would want to go through that twice," he snorted, trying to break off the tears forming. "Dammit…I-I'm fine, so just stop it. All of you!"

"We're never, ever letting you go again! Next time we'll be the body shields for ya, 'kay?!" Michelle wailed. Govert, having a better sense of composure, coughed lightly before wiping a tiny tear from his eyes, only nodded.

The orchid, patted him on the arm, careful to avoid the wound, "Like, don't die young! It's totally not as cool as you think it is! 'Kay?!"

"Don't copy me, pansy!" the rosemary snapped.

"Like, whatever! Don't copy _me_, ugly bumpkin!" he snapped back. Lovino groaned as the two argued over him. Seriously, those two never gave up did they?

While everyone cooed over him or just kind of snuggled into his shoulder, Lovino lay there watching them all and trying his damnedest not to cry or turn completely 'tomato' red. Shit. It wasn't working. Abel was the only one who didn't speak. He was sitting away from the gigantic cuddle-fest, his pipe (where the hell did he pull that from?) stuck in the corner of his mouth. When the herbalist shifted his gaze to the aconite, the blonde bastard seemed to smile, if only for a minute, before dropping back into his usual I-don't-give-a-fuck expression. "You did good…for a brat," he said gruffly and he ruffled the young Italian's hair in a sort of affectionate, kind of condescending way. The Italian puffed his cheeks, rising up a bit in an attempt to punch the bastard.

"Dammit, if these fatasses weren't on me I would kick your ass!" the herbalist snapped.

Anri looked at him wide-eyed, "Y-you think I'm fat?" she asked, her eyes getting even more watery than before. "H-how could you Cici?" she wailed.

He groaned. "Fuck, not you I-!"

"Eh? Like I'm totally not fat! Just because I've been taking more light and stuff lately doesn't mean I'm like a total bush!" Feliks wailed.

"Ahaha, you're as cold as usual Cici!" the ivy sprite laughed. The pirate sighed against him, his breath dusting across his neck, causing the smaller male to turn completely red.

"Ah, well…we're your fatasses aren't we?" the Spaniard said as he sat up a bit to look at him, eyes shining in amusement.

The herbalist scowled, turning his face away from that penetrating green gaze, and cursed, "Fuck you! Fuck all of you damn it!"

"Ohhh, you're cursing again!" the chrysanthemum wailed, "Where did I go wrong? This is your fault brother!" she snapped suddenly, smacking her brother hard on the head.

He nearly choked on his pipe, "Ow, fuck he's been cursing the moment he popped out of the seed!" Her eyes flared and he quickly amended himself, "Okay, okay, I won't curse da- darn it!"

The Spaniard smirked at the flustered aconite, "Completely whipped aren't you _amigo_?"

"Like you're one to talk, hypocrite. Cici's got you completely wrapped around his little finger doesn't he?" the aconite snapped back, before lighting his pipe with a match he seemingly took from nowhere. He blew a few smoke rings, finally having the decency to not blow the shit into the herbalist's face.

The pirate frowned, "Well…at least I'm with a person and not a pipe," he snickered. The aconite scowled and looked all but ready to smack Antonio when Anri intervened.

She grabbed them both by the shoulder, twisting the fabric in her hands and smiling serenely. "Oh boys…we're all friends here right? Because family is always nice to each other, yes?"

"R-right…"

The rosemary laughed, "Whipped like cream on the riverbed!"

Feliks made a disgusted expression, "Like, ew!"

"There's nothing gross about frog eggs!"

"Says the hillbilly!"

"Ahaha, let's all be friends yeah?"

For a second, the herbalist was grateful that they were here. Now he remembered all the headaches that came with it. Why couldn't they just shut up for once?

And that's exactly what Lovino was going to bitch about, when he ended up yawning instead. Everything seemed to get fuzzy and he felt sluggish. "Shit…what time is it?" he asked, feeling groggy. He looked up at the sky again, realizing that it was dawn. Damn it they were up all fucking day and night. The parts where he was knocked out don't count because he ended up with more headaches than actual rest.

"I guess we've been up all night…" Antonio murmured, before passing out completely onto his shoulder.

"I guess idiots fall asleep faster than normal people huh?" the aconite remarked offhandedly.

"Not helping asshole!" The pirate then began cuddling up on his shoulder. "O-oi, bastard get off!" Lovino spluttered but the idiot was already fast asleep. "Damn it, what do you have? Like an off switch or something?" Then he began to feel weights on his legs and right side. "Damn it, I'm not a goddamn pillow! Go sleep somewhere else!" They all feigned sleep and refused to get up. "Why you little-!"

"Just sleep, Cici. It's been a long day. Saplings need their rest after all," Anri said gently, brushing away a few stray hairs away from his face. She smiled gently at him, giving him a light peck on the forehead before quietly getting up. She placed his head back down on the soft grass and lay on the space above him, quickly falling asleep herself.

"Damn it…you guys just do whatever the hell you want," the Italian griped. Although…it wasn't entirely bad.

The aconite sprite sighed again, "Kid, just stop bitching and take a nap. We're cranky, you're cranky, let's get back to spitting at each other in the morning…afternoon…whatever." And with that the aconite flopped onto his back, pipe still in his mouth, and hands behind his head. "And don't even think about escaping brat."

The herbalist turned red, hissing, "Fuck you! What is this? A prison?" He didn't get an answer, as the bastard just ignored him and slept on. Bastards. Every single one of them. The only reason he didn't throw them all off and kick their sorry asses was because he was tired and shit. Not because he felt bad and wanted to let them sleep. Nope.

But even though he felt tired, he just couldn't seem to close his eyes. The sudden realization that Nicnevin was dead hit him hard. He was free. Free damn it! He felt euphoria just bubble up inside of him and he smiled softly to himself. They were alive. They were fucking alive and it just felt so good. Because after so many years of being under that bitch's thumb…after so long of being stuck down there, afraid of what she would do…she was gone.

And as quickly as the happiness came, it went. It was soon replaced by a feeling of dread. Nicnevin was dead. Her barrier was gone. Sure, the years had scared off people from coming in but…now that it was over, where would Antonio go?

He mentally slapped himself. Why was he complaining? The stupid pirate was a drain on his resources, damn lazy bastard. Good riddance. This whole damn nightmare started because of the pirate. So why did he feel so…so awful at the thought of him leaving forever? They were – a-at most…and that's stretching it! – friends. And all of a sudden he felt lonely. Was that possible when you were surrounded by a bunch of people?

_I won't lea_ve _without you._

Damn it. Antonio, that son of a bitch, how could he do this to him? He bit his lip and turned over to look at the pirate. He looked so peaceful, his face completely relaxed. He was so close too…and yet so far away. The herbalist could never leave. He had a family. A whole world here for himself, why would he just throw that away? Throw away everything that _Nonno_ and everyone else made for him?

_You are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me, Lovino._

"I can't…" the herbalist whispered aloud, trying to make himself change those traitorous feelings. "I can't…I fucking can't…" He trembled, curling his good hand into a fist and digging his nails into his palms. Stupid brain. Stupid chest. Stupid butterflies. He closed his eyes tightly, as if sleep would make it better. The moment they got up, they would go home, where _Nonno _would be waiting. He would get mad that Lovino was late, but he'd laugh it off soon enough. He would crack a joke, and make a jab about bringing a girl home for him one day then set off with Antonio and that would be that.

"Lovino…" a voice whispered, the air slightly tickling his ear. He felt a hand brush across his face, "Why are you crying?"

The Italian's eyes snapped open. He turned his head to look at Antonio, his eyes still slightly glazed with sleep, but growing more awake upon seeing that the herbalist was upset. Damn morning dew. Grass water always managed to get in his eyes somehow. "I'm not fucking crying shithead. Go back to sleep," he hissed quietly back. He hoped closing his eyes would end the conversation, but it didn't.

The Spaniard grabbed the brunet's chin to force him to look back. The pirate leaned forward, tapping their foreheads together. "You don't want to leave, do you?"

The herbalist stayed quiet for a second. Did he want to stay? Before he would undoubtedly say yes, without a moment's hesitation, but he found himself unable to say the words. He stayed quiet for too long and the Spaniard took that as a confirmation. He sighed, frowning in disappointment, before smiling again, the expression sadder than anything.

"If that's what makes you happy…then I won't force you," he muttered, caressing his cheek.

Lovino's mouth felt dry. "Antonio I-" Now if he could just get that damn lump out of his throat…

"But I'm not giving up," he said firmly, the arm around the brunet's waist holding on tighter.

"…Wait - What?"

"If I have to come back every year, every month, every day, then it'll be all worth it, if I get to be with you," he breathed. He paused for a bit, his eyes considering the words before speaking slowly, "A-and if you'll have me…I'd stay… I-if you'll let me of course," he added quickly, turning a bit pink. Well…that was a first. Stuttering and blushing? The universe must be coming to an end.

It took Lovino a while to actually talk and not open and close his mouth like some idiot fish. "I-I-I…fine! B-but only because you're a hopeless idiot and I-I feel so damn sorry for you!" he blustered, trying to look anywhere but at the pirate's face. "D-don't take it the wrong way idiot!"

Looking back at the pirate, he found him smiling so bright, it might as well have been the goddamn sun. "Of course, Lovi, of course~!" he practically sang, burying his face into his shoulder.

"A-and don't get too close idiot! I-I-If you forget the promise, I'm going to get you! I'll…I'll send a curse after you, you hear me?! You don't fuck with witches!" he stammered, trying in vain to sound intimidating.

He could feel the bastard smile against his shoulder, "I would never forget Lovi. Not in a million, gazillion years~!"

"Gazillion doesn't exist bastard!" he snapped, a little louder than he meant to.

"Mmmm…sure thing _mi querido_. Whatever you say goes…" Aaaand, he fell asleep again.

"Bastard! You can't just-!" He received a sharp whack to the head.

"Go. To. Sleep," Anri said softly, although her voice brooked no room for argument and he quieted the protest on his lips. He closed his eyes and relaxed, his heart feeling a bit lighter than before.

"Wait a second…how long have you actually been awake?"

"Sleep!"

"Fuck, alright already!" he muttered, scowling again before promptly letting himself close his eyes and fall asleep. He could still hear them giggling though. Damn eavesdropping bastards.

...

* * *

**And that conclude this arc. Second and last part will be done and posted….whenever. I honestly just wanted to get this done and I may disappear for a while. BUT MARK MY WORDS I WILL FINISH THIS DAMN MONSTER. Kay goodbye. *passes out***


	12. The Sun from the East

**Hi. You must be wondering where the hell I've been. Let's just say real life's been a bitch. I know I have a dubious no cursing policy, but today is rant day. I actually had a few chapters written out. But guess what? Computer decides to go belly up. Backup goes missing. *angrily flips table* Tomorrow, I'm smashing a certain computer hard drive with a hammer, and I will laugh. So yeah, this was all I managed to salvage from it because I sent this one chapter to my sort of beta (long story) and I thought, man I made you guys wait for so long and I have to write the transition anyway so... Here. Next chapter might take a while, but know that I am back in the business my baes and out of the hiatus thing. Sorta. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own thing. Meh. Meh meh meh meh. Meh. **

* * *

**Chapter 12: The Sun from the East **

_Freedom. It was a strange thing to swallow. Now with the new status quo, Lovino wondered what he would do from then on. Before, he hadn't been able to venture too far in the woods, couldn't move farther than where Nicnevin lived. But now he would be able to move as he would. Free to do what he wanted. Granted he had to be extra careful around the forest edge but hey, people were naturally terrified to begin with so what was the harm?_

He could do whatever the hell he wanted.

So why did it feel so hollow? He ran about through fields, exploring the forest beyond for years and years. He found waterfalls filled with flowers of every color, caves filled with crystals more luminous and beautiful than any diamond. Over the years he collected cures and medicines for nearly every illness. The Vargas family prospered from his elixirs. Life had never been better.

"You're a hero, Lovi!" his brother would always say. He was happy being here, here with the church and supposedly reforming it. His Nonno would be his old self, laughing and smiling as always.

The sprites, forever youthful, would continue to pester him everyday and the flowers would always speak and chatter about when he passed. Peace. Isolation. Away from all the humans as he had always wanted.

But he grew older. Grew older and waited and pined away for the man who promised to come every year. For a few days at a time he would see Antonio, take in the scent of faraway places and then say farewell and let him disappear, let him slip through his fingers each and every time.

He never was able to persuade the pirate to stay, and the pirate never was able to get the herbalist to leave. They were at an impasse. Antonio couldn't be taken away from the sea. And Lovino…he just, he just couldn't leave the place he was born in. Couldn't take another traumatizing experience wrought from leaving the safety of home. A part of him would shove him to say yes, say just fucking yes and go and just run away from it all.

But every time he wanted to and be a part of Antonio's merry band of heroes, he held himself back. He had a life here. He was prospering. No threats, no pain, no fear or danger to be found. Everyone feared him, no one came to find him. Everyone used his elixirs, letting him prosper quite handsomely. It was a life that was utterly and completely stable. How could he say 'no' to that? Say 'no' to a completely stable and normal life as opposed to one constantly on the run?

All the same, the pirate's visits would dwindle over time and eventually stop. And Lovino would sit there, wondering where he went. And the witch would pine and cry and ache but knew…knew that the pirate wouldn't be coming back. Whether because he had found someone else or had died at sea, it was clear from the years that passed that he was gone…forever.

* * *

…

Lovino started, waking up in a cold sweat. It was dark out, they must have been sleeping for a while. He shivered slightly from the evening air. Damn. How long had they been sleeping? He still felt utterly exhausted and if it was even possible, more tired than before. It was like only minutes had passed since he fell asleep. His hand was throbbing rather painfully. He wished for the thousandth time that he had been a bit more careful back there. He wanted to sleep again, wanted to pass out.

But he couldn't go back to sleep, not after that. His shifting made the pirate before him wake up a bit and a single emerald opened to look at him through bleary eyes, "Lovino…? What's wrong?" he murmured softly.

He contemplated telling the other man. "…Nothing. Just tired." To prove his point, he turned over and closed his eyes shut. The pirate, being sleepy and just really out of it, took in the lie and buried his face in the the Italian's hair. In just a few seconds, the man fell asleep again. Idiots really do fall asleep faster than normal people. Lovino supposed he was an idiot too.

At least when he was around Antonio.

…

Screaming. Explosions. Fucking great alarm clock.

"Wha…What the fuck—hell!" he spluttered incoherently, shooting up and nearly falling straight back down again because of the pirate leaning onto him. It was still dark out, but the sun was approaching…in the wrong direction? That was the west not the east…he didn't think much of it though. Shoving the half-awake idiot off of his person, he looked behind him to see Anri clutching at her chest, clawing at it as if there were something buried deep inside. Nearby, he could see Abel doing just about the same, clutching at his chest. "Shit, okay stay still, where does it hurt?" he snapped, entering medic mode.

Too far in pain, the could only groan and whimper. Wiping the sleep and gaining some form of coherence, Antonio managed to say, "What's going on?" He stood up, staring into the distance and cursing. But Lovino didn't even bother to turn around, seeing as how not only Anri and Abel, but the other sprites were in some sort of disarray as well. The only one that seemed completely unaffected was Michelle.

"W-what's wrong with 'em, Cici?" she pleaded, helping up Govert, who was clutching at his arm and touching it repeatedly as if to reassure himself that it was still there. On the other hand, the rosemary had to partially carry the Feliks, who kept moaning about headaches and burnt hair.

"I don't know, I don't know! What just-?"

"Lovino, duck!" The herbalist turned around just in time to see the pirate tackle him and the sprites to the ground. It was like everything had gone in slow motion for a second, as he watched enormous tree branches fly past overhead, completely covered in flames. Fire…

_Please, I WANT TO LIVE! _

He broke out into a sweat. His hands shook. And for a second, Lovino couldn't breathe. His lungs just wouldn't work.

Reality crashed down. Time went by again. And before he knew it, he was on his feet, numbly dragging his half-dead family beyond the tree line out of Nicnevin's clearing, hoping to escape from the fire that seemed to have sparked from nowhere.

"Keep moving, Lovino!" the pirate yelled, gritting his teeth as carried Abel on his back and helped support Michelle as she swayed back and forth with the others. It was like Lovino had become a puppet. He could do nothing but follow orders blindly, letting the strings pull him along, hoping that somehow the red hell from the west would disappear if they went down deep enough.

"I-I can't…" Anri wheezed, despite having Lovino as a support and practically carrying her on his back, she sagged and went limp in his arms.

"No!" he yelled, stopping, against the yelling all around him, to check on her. Her pulse was slowing down, her skin was greying, almost blackening at the fingertips. No…no…no this can't be happening. This can't be… The herbalist looked again at the direction of the smoke. God please…please , anything but that. Not there. Not his home.

Another loud boom sent debris flying upwards in stream of twisted fireworks. "No! No, fuck…no!" On impulse, he started for the direction of his burning cottage, desperate to see his home of six long years, to _save it. _

A heavy hand stopped him. "We have to go! The fire's going to spread to us if we don't run!" Completely logical words. But another groan from Anri forced him to move. He dropped his pack, leaving behind what little medicines had survived the entire ordeal. "Don't…don't let them die," he half-whispered, before sprinting straight towards the source of the fire.

"Lovino! _Mierda!__" _And the herbalist heard the man curse in Spanish again when Anri cried out. Their host plants…if they had completely burned… Shit. Well, you know what he meant. No one, knew the forest like he did, no one knew how these sprites worked. It was only logical that he run first. Hell, he wanted to kick whoever was the asshole who did this too.

And no one messed with his family and fucking got away with it.

It was still dark and maybe dawn really was approaching, but he couldn't tell. What he had thought was the sun was his house, burning a hole in the night sky. It was easy to find, but hard to follow.

The entire place reeked of ash and it was so smoky that he was beginning to have a hard time looking where he was going. He tripped. He coughed. Things were getting worse by the second. "Fucking…shit…" he panted, leaning against his knees and trying to get what precious oxygen he could from the polluted air.

"Keep the place burning, boys! Let all of Italy see the flames of recovery!" What the…? Ignoring the urge to find the source of the bastard's voice and punch his fucking lights out, Lovino tiptoed cautiously through until he reached the cottage clearing, nearly bursting out of the tree line.

It was as if everything had suddenly gone into slow motion.

His entire cottage was in flames, several loud pops resounded from inside followed by flickers of blues and greens from his many potions exploding. The flowers were screaming, in pain or in terror it was hard to tell. All he could hear right then was an overload of noise, from the exploding elixirs to the panicked cries of the begonias. Everything…his notes, his clothes, his books, all his plants — friends…they were just — just gone.

He put his hands to his head, curling up behind a bush to block out the screams. It didn't help all too much that the bush was cursing at him to get up and do _something._

"I don't know…I can't do it…Just shut up!" he groaned, trying to keep his head from exploding.

"Keep the fire going, purification can't fuel itself!" That voice…

_Kill him! _

_Make him suffer! _

_Drown him and then throw his body to the vultures! _

He winced at the last curse. Hydrangeas tended to be much more vindictive than others. With all the yelling, he was almost about to leave his hiding spot to give in to the screams, but went stock still at the sound of several — even newer voices.

"Our father who art in heaven…" Several prayers were murmured, making a single, monotone chant. He watched as several dark figures, most likely farmers as determined by the random torches, pitchforks and patchwork clothing — appeared from the cottage front to step into the light of the inferno. They held onto rosaries, praying softly.

They were a group of six men, each twice Lovino's size, surrounded his home. A newcomer, probably the ringleader, came up in the middle. He was tall and muscular, Lovino could tell that even when most of his body was hidden by the mottled green cloak he wore. There were no other distinguishing features about him except for the eerie white mask that covered the upper part of his face. He boomed in a voice like falling gravel, "Done gentlemen? It's about time we move deeper in — flush out the beast before it escapes." A few men looked uncomfortable, judging by the awkward shuffles. But one fire lit smile from the creepy masked ringleader set them into motion.

Thankfully, they started moving in the direction opposite of Lovino. When everyone, including creepy-mask-bastard, had left the clearing and were safely beyond the tree line, the young Italian ran out. His legs were wobbly from crouching and his head was spinning from the smoke. _My house__…__everything__…_ He shook his head. The longer he stared at the destruction, the more useless he would be.

He darted through the area, pushing potted flowers farther from the flames when he could, taking the seeds of rooted ones who couldn't run away. But there were only two plants that he absolutely needed to find.

He ripped away pot after pot, searching as close as he dared to the fire. His hands shook every time he came close, the heat sending him flashes of the past. "Anri! Abel!" he said as loud as he could without getting caught. "Please…please — goddammit where are you?"

Snapdragons and tomato plants. Bleeding hearts and poppies. Achillea and hyacinths.

The fire grew closer. The heat, more intense.

"Shit…shit, c'mon, I can do this…I can do this…" he whispered, willing himself not to bolt as the flames began licking hungrily at the grass only a few meters away.

The loud cracking, louder than ever before, indicated the roof's collapse. The whole thing collapsed inwards, smashing whatever remained of his humble cottage.

The fire jumped forward, barely inches from his face when it surged forward.

"Cici…" From the flaming debris that flew from the bonfire was a small pot, half filled with chrysanthemums and a few, pitiful aconite buds. They were all singed, although whatever sparks were to be had were doused by the soil that spilled from the pot when it landed.

"G-guys!" He ran forward trying to salvage what he could.

He ripped cloth off of his own cloak, wrapping the pot with the strips to keep what remained of the frame together. "It's okay, I got you…I got you and now it's going to be okay-"

A click and cold metal smashed against the back of his head. He saw stars and fell forward, still clinging to the sack. "Now what do we have here?" The voice was distorted and…off-key, to his ears, but he still knew who it was. Shit. Dazed, he watched with half-conscious apathy as dusty leather boots walked towards him, to kneel down at his face. A rough glove grabbed him by the chin, forcing him to look up at his assailant.

"You bastard…" he croaked, his throat extraordinarily dry. "You…you…go to hell," he managed to cough out. Damn it. He couldn't think straight with the black dots dancing in and out of his vision. The flowers beneath him stirred weakly.

"Such a pity, is that all you can come up with?" The masked bastard sounded disappointed.

Lovino's anger flared accordingly. "G-get the fuck off of me and I'll beat your ass, if that's what you want, you sick fuck!" he snapped, struggling to get up. If he could just feel his other hand…if he wasn't so damn sleepy he would…

The masked man grabbed him painfully by the hair and smashed his head back in the dirt. He stood up, stepping on the herbalist's back to keep him from getting up. "I'll have to decline, darling. Besides, it looks like you'd rather drop dead than do that anyway."

"Fuck you!" he yelled, struggling again, although it was like his arms had turned to jelly. He flailed about, but it had all the effectiveness of a wet fish flopping on land. Utterly useless.

The bastard chuckled, his voice turning low, "Is that an invitation, sweetheart?"

The gun was pressed against his skull, tracing the back of his head with false affection. He shivered. And he desperately scrabbled for something…anything to help him. "Hell no, you fucking piece of shit! Go burn in hell!" He hated how pathetic the threat sounded.

"I'm afraid that'll be you today," he sighed, as if they were talking about something as simple as the weather, "But look on the bright side little one…" He curled his hands into fists, bucking and thrashing. Shit. Shit. Shit… "…I'll make sure your death is fast. There are many who would much rather have you die in ways far more — uncomfortable." The gun clicked back. Fuck. Fuck! He couldn't die here. Not like this!

He wanted to scream, cry, but all he could do was sit there like an idiot and wait for the bullet to lodge itself in his brain.

"Lovino!" He snapped to attention. The weight on his back was lifted as something — or someone — tackled the bastard off of him. Gingerly pushing himself up, he saw… "Abel?" Somehow, one way or another, the man had managed to shove the hunter down, although it wouldn't be long before he was thrown off. He had never seen the aconite look so…frail before. And so strong. "Abel get away-!"

"We'll handle this." A heavy hand landed on his shoulder, and he didn't even get to curse as Antonio threw him over his shoulder and dropped him in Michelle's and Felik's waiting arms.

They lifted him up, not letting him touch the ground to run. "The flowers! Shit, let me go! Let me go dammit!" Govert, running out from the tree line, picked up the pile of soil and flowers with his one good arm and ran back out. "Where the hell do you think you're going?!" The ivy didn't answer, set on running off with the bundle, away from the fire fight.

A pained yell, made him turn his head to see Abel get thrown off, close to the fire. Antonio ran over, shoving the masked man and dragging the sprite along as he parried the blows coming from the damned witch hunter. "Shit! Let me go! I can help-!"

"It's too late for that, Cici! You're drained, we have to go!" Feliks yelled as they ferried him away.

"Oh no you don't!" the masked man growled, his grin turning feral. Antonio kept the hunter at bay.

"Sorry, but you'll have to settle with me for now, _amigo_," the Spaniard said, his smile dropping as he surged forward to shove the creepy fucker back.

All through this, Lovino was being carried farther and farther away… "Stop! Stop it! No! No, Abel! Antonio — fuck!"

Michelle shook her head, "We can't let you go…they can handle it!" And despite his protests, they dragged him away beyond the tree line just as the country hicks from earlier burst into the clearing. They raised their makeshift weapons, brandishing them to the two men in the center.

They made a small circle around the two. The leader raised his curved sword, "Kill them!"

"No!" But no matter how much he struggled, no matter how much he wanted to get to them and make it _stop, _he could do nothing but watch as the men closed in. Soon enough they disappeared entirely from view. He could feel heat prick his eyes, "Are you happy now?" he said, his voice breaking. The sprites didn't even look at him. "Are you happy?! They're…they're…"

The orchid then dropped him, his legs colliding heavily with the ground. Feliks grabbed his face, smushing his cheeks with both hands, "Shut. Up!" When Lovino didn't say anything (mostly from shock), the orchid continued, "We have a plan, honey. Something that you didn't have back there! So shut up and run with us!" Michelle gently put him down and they dragged him along, running through the woods.

A loud explosion, louder than the first ones that started this whole damn mess, came from behind. "Keep running Cici! Don't look back!" Michelle yelled, pulling at his injured arm insistently. It was still dark out, but that was changing pretty quickly at the rising intensity of the fire behind. So many twists in turns in the musky fog…even Lovino — having lived here for most of his life — was at a loss as to where they were going.

"Like, you're pulling at his bad arm, let go you idiot!" Feliks snapped, seeing him wince.

Michelle snapped back, "Better hurt than dead, jerkface!" But she did let go, only to go from behind and push him there.

"Is that really any better? Damn it — I nearly tripped!" he yelped. It probably didn't help considering the fact that he was dragging his heels in order to look back at the explosion. Antonio…Abel…

After what felt like hours, they burst out of the dark maze, standing at the edge of the forest on a hill that was overlooking the road back to Trapani. It was dusty and nearly covered with undergrowth from near abandonment.

"Cici…" a feeble voice called. Turning around, he saw Anri, still an ashy grey and sitting beside Govert, who was tending to her plants. She seemed a bit better, although her fingertips remained black and her body had reverted back a few years, making her look like a ten year old girl physically.

"Anri!" He ran over, hugging her tightly. "God…I thought you were-!" He stuffed his face in her shoulder, muffling teary hiccups.

She patted him gently, still so fragile… "Shhh…there, there." It was like he had turned twelve again, except he wasn't the one on the verge of death this time around. "I'm okay…I'm —" her face contorted in pain for a split second, "I'm okay. Thanks to you — and you too, Govert."

"Not a problem, ma'am," the ivy sprite said, tipping his burned hat. "Lucky for us, we were only burned a bit. The humans didn't bother with us much after that." He rubbed at his arm, scratching at the wound with a furrowed brow. Pulling away, Lovino took a good look at them. They definitely had seen better days. They were good people. They didn't deserve any of this..!

He sat back, his hands curled in his lap. Abel and Antonio hadn't come back yet. The urge to run back to them made him shake. But the warning hand from Feliks on his shoulder prevented him from doing so. "What did you do…?" he asked quietly instead.

Anri, seeming entirely exhausted, left Feliks to explain. "Like, after you ran off, your boyfriend (Lovino didn't even try to argue) wanted to hunt you down, but like, we had to hold him down to get a plan in. Abel, was being a total weed and wouldn't move if he didn't get to do something, so we sent in Antonio and Mr. stick-up-his-ass first as a diversion and we dragged you back here," he finished, looking at the herbalist pointedly.

His cheeks turned slightly red in embarrassment. "Shut up," he muttered. So he was being impulsive. Could you blame him? A second later and the sprites would have been toast. Literally. "So…what? You didn't think of what to do after that? What the hell about the 'diversion'? How are they supposed to get out — huh?" he griped. His fists curled so tight that his knuckles turned white.

"Hold your horses, there, Cici," Michelle added, kneeling down besides him. "You know Govert always has a thing up his sleeve right?"

That didn't make him feel any better. Hell, he just felt pissed. "What the hell did you give him?!" he hissed.

The ivy sprite, ignoring the death stare, looked down, reading a watch that didn't exist. "He should be coming back in about three…two…one!"

"Lovi!" Tumbling out in mess of ash and leaves was the stupid pirate captain himself, carrying a small Abel in his arms, completely wrapped in his trademark blue scarf. His eyes moved crazily, "Quick, Govert, Abel is going to-!"

He revealed the small bundle. Abel didn't look so good. Lovino leaned down, taking the little sprite out of the pirate's arms to cradle the small body himself. He was so silent, so cold. And Lovino feared for the worst. The little aconite coughed and opened one lazy eye. "Stupid kid. If you ever run off like that again…"

In response, Cici let out a relieved, almost hysterical laugh, "I-Idiot! I should be saying that to you, old man. You're not young anymore." He had to stay silent to stop from going completely nuts. He had fallen close to that little line way too many times today. He'd rather keep his mind intact — or what was left of it — to cope with the situation. He could go into full on crazy mode later after they weren't in mortal danger (If that was even possible to get out of for him).

The ivy sprite raised a hand, patting the aconite's forehead, "He'll be fine. Cici got his host plant, just needs a safe place to be planted. Probably at the Cassiopeia."

The pirate dropped down, looking back behind him nervously, "Whatever that is — Is it close? That bomb isn't going to distract them for long."

The sprites shook their heads and Govert bit his lip, "No…it's in the deepest part of the forest. It's our home, the place all us sprites originate from. Call it like what you guys think of as a fairy circle. It's heavily protected and…and normal humans—" he looked pointedly at the pirate, "can't go in."

Silence.

"O-oh…Well," Antonio cleared his throat, sitting up. He looked to the path, out to the town that would inevitably lead to freedom. His eyes lingered on Lovino, pleading, "Is this where we…?"

"You can't go out there! Who knows how many more are sitting out there?" the young brunet said, latching onto the pirate's arm.

Antonio seemed conflicted before saying, "Well I can't sit here and get caught." He grabbed Lovino by the shoulders, "Please, just come with me! Our chances will be better out there than waiting in there. It's a fire hazard just waiting to happen. I'll protect you, all of you!"

There was some truth to his words. The dream seemed to echo in his head again. But he resisted the allure to change its outcome, "No! I can't leave! I have to…I have to…Just stay here! Please…" And the pirate looked tempted to do so.

But instead, Anri spoke, struggling to sit up. "No! No…no he can't stay here." Lovino felt resentment flare up within him, but it was doused quickly by poor chrysanthemum's coughs and the truth in those words.

"Anri! Anri, please you're still hurt, we'll-!" the herbalist tried helping her sit back down and relax, but she wouldn't have any of that. "Lovino…It's you that needs to make a choice! Now!"

"Wait…wait what? But I thought-!" he protested.

Abel sat up in his arms, feebly hitting his chest, "Brat…you know what we're talking about. You…you can either stay here, hide at the Cassiopeia and live like you always have…"

"Or…?" He didn't know why he had asked. He knew what the other option was.

"Or you can go…you can go…" he seemed to struggle with the words, like it physically pained him to do so.

"Be free to leave, go with Antonio," Anri finished tiredly. "You can't make a compromise here, you know that."

The pirate, obviously still trying to protect Lovino's decision, protested, "It's okay, you don't have to force him. If anything, I'll…"

But the herbalist pushed him away, shaking his head. "I…" he trailed off. He couldn't do it. Lovino couldn't anchor Antonio here. Because as much as he…even if he wanted the pirate to stay, the man would always be tortured. Even Lovino could see the longing in his eyes when he looked out at the road to Trapani, to the sea…to freedom. How could the brunet trap yet another in this self-imposed cage?

A cage? Is that what it was? Was it truly worth staying here for the rest of his life? Hoping for the freedom that would never come.

Feliks patted his shoulder and Michelle squeezed his good hand. Govert said quietly, "Quickly now, you have to choose Lovino."

He looked around: from his sprites, his family, to Antonio. Antonio. The person he…? The dream's visions came back with a vengeance. Safe in his cage. Wings clipped. Waiting and waiting and waiting for his feathers to grow back. Hoping for a chance to be free and letting it go.

Abel brushed his cheek. "Go on, kid," he whispered.

Antonio didn't say anything, not being able to seeing as how it wasn't his place to choose. All the same, Lovino could see the tiniest glimmer of hope in those emerald depths.

_For a few days at a time he would see Antonio, take in the scent of faraway places and then say farewell and let him disappear, let him slip through his fingers each and every time._

_And the witch would pine and cry and ache but knew…knew that the pirate wouldn't be coming back. Whether because he had found someone else or had died, it was clear from the years that he was gone…forever._

The image of him standing on the beach, old and alone resonated strongly within him. To never see that sunny smile, to lose that tiny piece of happiness…he would much rather die. He looked back at the sprites. Anri smiled at him weakly, "Go, sweetheart. Don't worry, us old flowers know a few tricks or two up our sleeves."

Fuck it. He was practically bawling.

He held onto them, letting them in on a group hug that practically squeezed out his lungs. "I'll miss you," he confessed, trying to hold in the water surreptitiously falling from his face.

"And we'll miss you too," Abel whispered. Hands patted his hair and squeezed his shoulders, for what felt like the last time.

"Stay warm, eat well and don't stay up late like you always do, okay?" Anri said, not bothering to wipe her tears away and letting them drip onto his torn cloak. Her grip was stronger than it had ever been.

"Eat lots and lots and have adventures for all the rest of us!" Michelle whispered.

Feliks brushed his hair out of his face and took Abel from his hands, "Go honey. Go and show this world what you can do," he kissed him on the forehead before sniffling and backing away.

"And don't ever forget…" Govert started, placing a small vial in the witch's hands. Lovino didn't know what it was, but the ivy sprite just shook his head at his questioning gaze and closed his hands over the glass tube. "We'll always be right here for you."

Before he could pull away, Abel stretched out his hands to Lovino, gesturing for him to come close. He pulled off his beloved blue scarf and draped it around the young Italian's neck. "Stay safe, kid." And with that final parting gift, the herbalist backed away, close to the beginning of the path with what seemed to be his new partner in crime.

Antonio wrapped an arm around him comfortingly. He was solemn, and he held onto Lovino firmly, a new sort of protectiveness emanating from his person. "I swear, I'll protect him no matter what." The herbalist didn't pay attention to the odd look he gave the sprites, which conveyed his thanks, his gratefulness for their blessing.

Anri pulled out a pouch and threw it to the pirate to catch. "I trust that you will Antonio," she said, smiling sadly. She didn't say what was inside, but the pirate seemed to get what it was from a single glance and shoved into his pocket.

"If you fuck up, I'll rip the skin off of your skull and feed it to the crows," Abel threatened. Even as a tiny little child, he was still pretty intimidating.

The Spaniard laughed weakly. "Of course, I'll do my best."

There was a moment of silence, as they stayed close and memorized each other's faces for what seemed to be the last time in a long time. Another explosion and loud voices drew them back to reality. "Go! We'll be fine!" Anri called, and the sprites pushed them into action.

"I'll come back! I swear, you guys will see the open ocean with me when I come back!" Lovino called, glaring at the pirate to dare say otherwise before letting the taller man grab his hand and drag them both down the hill.

"Thank you..for everything!" Antonio said, looking back and feeling heavier than he had ever felt before. Guilt. Worry. Lovino was everything he had ever wanted but…was he being selfish? Taking away the Italian from his home, watching the herbalist look back as he waved to the sprites that were left behind. But then when the reached the bottom of the hill, he saw the little brunet look forward and squeeze his hand.

He looked utterly exhausted, but he a sweet, awkward sort of smile broke upon his face — a first that Antonio had never seen before and hoped to impress in his memory. Giddy excitement as well as sorrow intermingled in the Italian's multicolored eyes. And despite these conflicting emotions, there was no regret lingering in those beloved orbs.

His chest tightened with affection. He couldn't help but ask again, "Do you trust me, Lovino?"

The witch adjusted his scarf and cloak, but he kept on running forward — by Antonio's side, "…Yes."

And they ran off into the night.

* * *

**Another reason as to why it took so long. I don't know why but this chapter was extremely difficult for me to write. Don't ask. And argh, I'm not sure if I got them right in this chapter and I just...MEH. I tried my best. Hopefully it ain't too OOC, considering that everyone was dead tired and STILL in mortal peril after all the shit they've been through. That's my only excuse, I'm sorry senpais. **

**But thanks to those who left reviews for yours truly during and before the break! Y'all are awesome, AWESOME. Kiss kiss.**


	13. The Actors of Trapani

**A/N: Oh.**

**OH HI THERE. OH, you though it was dead? Welp...I'm not. Yay? *Cue tomatoes* **

**Yeah, you know that thing I said about updating faster? I lied. Right through my teeth. *gets shot* Ahahaha, sorry I've been - relatively busy for a while and I just couldn't find time to think of what to write and then actually write the damn thing. Also I was in a really bad rut and I was struggling to plan out what's gonna be happening in the following parts. *gets shot again* Forgive me my lovelies. Also, I'm gonna disappear for a month so uh-s-surprise! *T-T-Triple shot!* I'll do my best to get another chapter out before I go. No promises though. But I'm back baby. Let's get this train wreck moving along shall we?**

**Warnings: Threads of a plot. Not even threads just cobwebs that are flying away-oh look there they go... and OCs. OH GOD BURN IT, BURN IT WITH FIRE. **

**Disclaimer: APH is not mine, meh, beh, teh, peh, ve, sausages. **

* * *

**Chapter 13: The Actors of Trapani**

"Come along Feliciano, can't have you lagging behind today." Augustus Vargas, waved over his grandson. The poor young man was ill, but bless his heart, continued to to do good for both his family and people. Just now, he had been cleaning a particularly nasty scrape on a poor little boy with a neat little herbal salve.

"Thank you, mister!" The hooded priest-in-training nodded, remaining silent but patting the boy on the head. The boy smiled brightly, showing off two missing front teeth before getting up and running again.

"Hey now, be careful. Don't want to go and get everyone sick now," the old man chuckled, patting the young man on the head. "And would it hurt to smile a bit more? It's always nice to see a smile for service," he whispered.

The young man's lips twitched upwards before disappearing behind a thick blue scarf. A few feeble coughs followed.

"I suppose that's good enough." The old man put a hand around his grandson, "Now stay close. The docks are right by the slums and no matter how much you say otherwise, the old men there don't just want to have a chat and some tea." There was an indignant huff and a squeak as the young man was pulled along.

They walked amongst busy streets, filled with city merchants and faraway traders. The docks were a colorful place, but filled with red. The guards, draped in crimson and armed with silver, patrolled the streets. The hooded man stiffened — as did all others that were close when the guards passed. One of the soldiers stopped to salute the old man before continuing his march with his partner.

"Now, now, don't be so tense. Just take a look at all these lovely ladies and relax!" He pointed to the nearest brothel, half naked women beckoning them. Augustus slapped him hard on the back, sending the smaller figure back into motion. There was a sharp flash of hazel and then it disappeared. The old man didn't take much heed of the warning look, merely throwing back his head and laughing loudly.

The docks of Trapani were lined with tall buildings, most at least two stories and looming high overhead. Flowers were placed at the door of each establishment, a different arrangement for each. Begonias for one, red lilies for another, there was an set for each building. Perhaps the flowers were a way to hide the smell. But no matter how sweet the aroma, the odor of sun-baked seamen and rotting wood was prevalent. The young clergyman pulled his scarf tighter around his face as they passed a particularly foul-smelling man.

Instead, as many people tended to do, the young man focused on what he could see in front of him. The buildings, while pleasant enough, held wandering eyes. Occasionally, a few angry faces could be seen looking out, scowling awfully before shutting the blinds. Several times, the young man thought he saw a woman pour out a bucket filled with dark water out onto a crowd of rowdy drunkards.

The young man leaned closer to his grandfather and away from the windows. At least the buildings were finely made. Carved into the face of one was an intricate cross, in another establishment there was carved fine curls and twisted leaves. The buildings here made the people seem far more accomplished than they really were.

Speaking of the people… A few leered at him, others glared, but a noticeable number smiled and waved at him. Some even called out blessings to him, or greeted him with word of thanks. Hesitant, the small Italian waved back. A few wished for him better health — for he was rather ill and yet he continued to go about his daily duties. What a good child, they said, for a young one to be so devoted to his chores and his work. God will surely bless him with a place in heaven, they said.

_If only they knew. _

The streets were filled with colorful people. Blasphemers and heretics amongst the devout laities of Trapani, fair traders and greedy merchants, touring students and great nobles, all pushing through the crowded streets. Dark skinned, tan, fair-faced and sallow. Jewels hanging from their ears and lips, long greasy hair tied off at the neck or laying about in a messy pile around them. Some with teeth, others with metal in their mouths, a few missing limbs here and there. All of them were loud, probably crazy, and so full of life they all seemed to blend together as a single entity. People familiar and not, strange and normal were all mixed about in clusters of part foreign and part native and intermingling with one another as if it they had been together their whole lives.

"Did you see the breasts on that broad? Damn, if I had the gold…"

"And so it is said that children ought to obey their parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord."

"So, I told 'er that I reckon her ma's dead in the gutter for all I care!"

"Tell Varric that I want my gold now, or the deal's off, understood?"

"Get your hands off of me!"

"_Como cabras. __¿__Quieres una cabra?_"

"I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear that."

"Hey, hey hands off of the merchandise! You touch, you buy!"

It was all so…overwhelming. There were so many people. Too many people. And they all seemed so happy and unchanged and completely…different. The same and not the same and all too strange…

"This way, Feliciano! Come along, boy we don't have all day!" The elderly man grabbed his sleeve tightly. His grip was surprisingly strong for one so old. He was dragged away, towards a small alleyway over to the left and away from the crowd.

Here the street was small, but not altogether abandoned. There were quite a few people here, but it was by far, more manageable.

The old man leaned forward. For a man of nearly sixty, he was tall and strong. Robust if one could say it. He firmly shook the young man, trying to anchor him back to reality. Signore Vargas leaned forward and whispered reassurances. "It'll be alright son. You're going to be alright, just a bit longer and we'll go home."

The fragile little Italian still shivered, but he nodded. The old man smiled, showing off his gold tooth. "That's my boy. Let's get going now! Can't have Leone waiting on us can we? He's got a big day in store for himself tomorrow after all."

Following the crooked path, the hooded man found himself standing at the edge of a market square. The stalls were very distinct, with different colored banners and cloths covering each stand. The market was nowhere near as busy as the main street, but there were still quite a few people milling about the stalls.

The vendors were yelling out prices and people were buying or stepping past them politely, not shoving past them and screaming profanities. A much easier crowd to deal with. They brushed easily through the people, stepping past shoppers and neatly maneuvering through to the stand they wanted. It was a fruit stand draped in soft green cloth with a basket of white calla lilies hanging overhead. Nothing special about it aside from the fact that there were nothing but apples.

Bright red, patched yellow and red, and bold green. There wasn't anything else, unlike the other stalls, just apples.

The young man picked one up, staring at it. It was shiny, almost unnaturally so. He could just see a bit of his reflection in it too. It made one wonder what the vendor did to polish the fruit so well. The old man, not paying any mind to the produce, stepped forward and yelled, "Magdelene, where are you?"

The noise was enough to make the hooded male jump. He nearly dropped the apple, juggling it between his hands. He glared at the old man, who looked none too apologetic. When no one seemed to be looking, the young clergyman kicked his grandfather hard in the ankle.

"Ow-! That's abuse of the elderly —"

When a pygmy sized woman stepped into the stall, presumably the owner, the young man stomped hard onto the man's foot, silencing him. His grandfather grumbled quite a bit. A few people peered over at the pair, wondering what on earth was happening. (Perhaps Signore Vargas stubbed his toe on a stone? Because surely the young priest-in-training would never, ever hurt another living being. He was much too sweet for that.)

A tiny wrinkled woman, wearing sandals that were high enough to be mistaken for stilts, stepped forward.

She had a pleasant smile, albeit a little senile, and had a friendly air about her. Her eyes remained closed, however, when she extended her hand to the younger of the pair, "A pleasure to meet you. Feliciano was it? I've heard many good things about you."

"O-of…ahem…thank you," the young man squeaked. As if pondering the idea, he quickly tacked on a half-hearted, "Ve…" to his greeting. The tiny woman, presumably Magdelene, bobbed her head up and down. She moved away to look at old Augustus.

"And you're as much a fool as I remember, Vargas," the little woman quipped in a chirpy tone.

"I'll have none of this — I was a commander once I'll have you know," Augustus grumbled, giving a sharp glance to both his grandson and the old vendor.

She waved the comment away, "Yes, yes and I do recall you waking up with whores and having all your money stolen not once, but four times during your time in the army. And each time you'd come crying to me."

"I was young! I may have been several coins poorer, but the price for the wisdom I've gained is irreplaceable. And with the amount of times I've cheated death (and men) I'd say, I'm quite wise and rather distinguished." As if to emphasize his point, the elderly man pulled at his jacket, straightening it out and standing taller. The young hooded man supposed that his grandfather was once a very striking figure — perhaps once very tall and quite dashing. But that was the past.

"Don't mind him, he's senile. He likes to think he's handsome, but really his gut's the size of the port," the young man whispered to the vendor. Then, realizing what he had said was rather unkind, added, "T-that was just a joke of course ahaha-!…V-ve…" Then quickly, the young man pulled the scarf tighter over his face and pulled his hood down low. More out of embarrassment than necessity.

The vendor bobbed her head in agreement, seeming not to notice the younger man's blustering. She turned her attention back to the fuming retired soldier, "So, I finally have a place for those lilies you like so much. They're coming along quite nicely, if I do say so myself."

The jovial spark in the veteran's eyes was replaced by something sharper. It disappeared behind a booming laugh. "I see! Oh you know how Maria loves her lilies. She'd just adore it if you'd tell her where to get a lovely garden like yours."

The vendor looked up at the basket, smiling absentmindedly as a few petals floated into her wrinkled palm. "Ah yes, they're a lovely bunch. But take note — lilies can be awfully picky at first. Not too wet but not too dry, only a moderate amount of sunlight and no more than a half a day's worth. But once you've got them flowering, they're an awfully agreeable lot."

Augustus leaned forward, his hand drifting to his purse. His grandson eyed the bag balefully. So much was going into this…and even then, how much could be relied upon? The small Italian returned his attention to the small woman before them sitting cross legged on a stool and smiling serenely at them.

For a moment, the image was disturbed by a flash of darkness. The shape of a woman with an owl for a head and a pendant embedded into her chest. The hooded man shook his head and balled his palms into fists. In an instant, the scene was bright again.

Augustus pulled out a few gold coins and dropped them casually into the woman's hand. "There you go, ma'am. A pot of lilies for our darling Maria and maybe a basket of your freshest apples?" Magdelene juggled the coins in her hand, making them jingle loudly in her palm.

She dropped the coins in her pocket and clapped loudly. In the corner of his eye, the young clergyman thought he saw someone move away in the shadows, into a nearby alleyway.

"Deal. A pleasure doing business you two." She got off her stool, hobbling over to the side of her stall to pull out a small basket. She threw in a few red and green apples and then passed a single patchy red and yellow apple to the young 'Feliciano'. "Be careful though, child. These apples can be sour." She passed him the basket and a single eye cracked open, revealing a piercing blue iris. For a moment, the young man was frozen in that gaze.

"Be wary and don't stray to far from your grandfather on the way now." She closed her eye and smiled at him. "Well, off you go!" she said, grabbing his shoulders and swiveling the young man around, "I'm sure you have many, many things to do. Be sure to keep your grandfather in check."

"I can take care of myself," Augustus complained, "Magdelene's the one that needs a caretaker now that she's eighty—guh!" The woman slammed her stilt-like sandals into his face, sending the old man sprawling into the street. A few, newer customers were shocked and confused but the regulars simply shrugged the incident off. Seeing this, the hooded young man wondered if this was just another thing considered normal around here.

With a dark cloud hanging over the woman's deceiving smile, she turned to 'Feliciano', "Let this be a lesson, child. 'Thou shalt not insult a woman by stating her age'. It's the 11th commandment you know."

The hooded man sweat dropped and took a step back, "R-Right…"

…

* * *

...

"Is it me or did her kick get stronger…?" Augustus muttered under his breath, rubbing his forehead.

"I don't care. You brought it on yourself, old man," the hooded man scoffed from beneath the scarf. His eyes shifted quickly to the other people passing through.

"Bah! Just give me a moment to complain, will you? Youngsters these days…" Augustus started mumbling complaints under his breath all while pouting like a child. 'Feliciano' was about to retort, when a flash of a red and silver caught his eye.

Before he knew it, the couple were approached by a trio of soldiers. The hooded young man stiffened and took a step back involuntarily. It took nearly all his willpower not to turn and run.

They all wore the same armor, were the same height, and had the same gait. With their helmets on, one couldn't see their faces. All that could be had were black slits for eyes and the occasional flash of color indicating that there was a human inside and that this was not some antique mannequin making its way towards them.

Augustus kept a firm hand on the hooded man's shoulder before bracing himself with a smile. With his booming voice he greeted them. "Sirs! Nice to see you, lads. How's the patrol coming along? Meet any little ladies on your way here?"

The soldier leading the procession pulled off his helmet. "Not at all, sir, just passing through to get to the barracks." A fair-faced young man with black hair and starry eyes smiled at the two of them.

The old man's mouth threatened to twitch downwards, but he persevered in keeping that congenial smile on his face. Young 'Feliciano' had half a mind to clap for him right there. "Piero! Couldn't tell it was you under all that junk!" The old man slapped the soldier hard on the back, enough to make him stagger a bit. The other soldiers took a respectful step to the side and removed their helmets to salute the old veteran. "Has Enzo been driving you bare already?"

Piero snorted, "More like shaving the years off our lives. At this rate, I won't live to see my grandkids!"

"If you'll get any!" said the man to his left.

"Yeah, what girl would want that ugly mug of yours?" another man laughed.

Both of them, 'Feliciano' didn't recognize. But Piero recognized him. "And Father Feliciano? Er…well you're almost there right? A few more years of instruction and you'll already be there, congratulations!" The young soldier went over to pat the shorter male on the shoulder, but the clergyman immediately sidestepped the gesture. The soldier frowned. "Is there something wrong-?"

"Oh don't mind him! He's just a little sick, he can't really talk!" Augustus said loudly, swinging his arm around the unwilling hooded man. The small Italian pulled the scarf higher up his face and nodded frantically along.

"O-oh? Uh, I see. I hope you feel better soon then! But should you really be out like this?"

Again, Augustus answered for his grandson, "Oh, just getting some fresh air! It's gotten a bit musty back at the cottage so we're out and about. Just about to head back now actually, after we check on Laterza of course."

"Ah, your boarder. Well, we're going back to the barracks right now. If you want, I could escort the two of you there-"

"N-No t-thanks!" young 'Feliciano' squeaked. Everyone's eyes focused on the quivering figure. Shaking, he pulled the scarf tighter over his face and pulled down his hood. "V-Ve…w-we're g-going to go…g—grocery shopping first! A-And everybody would be scared cause you're around because those helmets are pretty scary and all and, and…ve…?" He tried to excuse himself from speaking by 'coughing' roughly into the scarf.

Piero frowned but sighed. "I guess we can't argue with that. A shame the people can't see us in a better light."

One of his fellow soldiers scoffed, "Eh, it's no skin off my nose. Who gives a damn?"

"Unlike you, Rocci, I actually do give a damn about some things." The man named Rocci shrugged.

Augustus clapped his hands together, "Well, I think we've held you three long enough. You heard my grandson. And don't make him talk like that, anymore. Stresses him enough as it is — his voice is horrible now, you heard it!"

"Yeah…well, I'll see you two later then. Ciao!" the dark-haired soldier said, saluting the retired soldier one more time before putting on his helmet. Soon enough, the three soldiers were back to marching down the streets and frankly, scaring the shit out of everyone they passed.

When they were gone, the young clergyman could finally breathe. He had to lean against the wall of the nearby building to keep from collapsing. His legs were still shaking and he was panting as if he had run all through the city. The old man stood by his grandson, waiting for the boy to regain his composure.

Signore Vargas stared up at the sky. "I guess some things just never go away…eh boy?"

"Just…just shut up," the young man snapped as he pulled the cowl of his hood lower over his face. "I…I'm over it already. It's been…three — four years?"

"Five."

"Five — right!" His voice was unnaturally high — enough to be mistaken for the real Feliciano's voice actually. "I'm not a thirteen year old brat anymore — I can handle this!" He said this more to himself than anything.

The old man chuckled. "Even after all these years, you're still such a child."

"What was that, old bastard?" Augustus didn't even have time to respond before a hard foot met his shin.

"Abuse of the elderly! Abuse of the elderly!"

"Shut up, dammit, we're going to get caught!"

…

* * *

...

"Parry! Parry! Thrust! Thrust! Parry-! Damn it, Castillo you fight like a fat bitch in heat! Put your back into it!"

"Y-yessir!"

And then the boy proceeded to do the exact same thing as he was doing before. Stupid kid. The captain of the guard on Erice Wall put his head in his hands. It seemed that with each passing year he would get more and more idiots into the guard. And this year by far was the worst set yet.

"I said parry — not duck and run for cover Quattrocchi! Get your ugly fucking mug back into the duel before I shove that dagger up your ass!"

"Y-yessir sorry—ow! Dude that hurt!"

The captain face-palmed.

In the end, he knew the higher ups would force him to pass them all. A lot of these brats had connections from within _L__a citt__à __sacra__. _Sacred city his ass. They could all go to hell for all he cared. He pulled out the flask hanging at his hip and took a deep swig.

He was already fifty-four for Christ's sake. He should be retired, staying at home and drinking away the day. But no. Because a certain _somebody_ said 'N—oo, no we have to protect the people' and 'You're the best they've got, you ought to help them out' and the 'don't worry I'll go with you'.

Bullshit.

Enzo Nicolosi swore, the day he was chosen to be the captain of Erice's wall guard, he was going to brutally murder—

"Enzo!" Speak of the devil. He'd know that ditzy voice anywhere. Without looking back, Enzo pulled out the knife from his belt and threw it behind him without looking. Unfortunately, he heard the knife smack hard against the stone wall rather than into a certain someone's ribcage.

"Bastard…Come to finally pay your dues you damn cheat?" he called out, not even bothering to look behind him. He already knew who it was after all. His own knife patted him on the shoulder. From behind was the smiling little shit himself. Augustus Vargas passed him the hilt and patted his shoulder.

"Don't be so crass, Enzo. Your talent for ripping out potential ought to be shared with the world!" The captain had half a mind to punch the other's face in. He didn't. He swore he had the patience of a saint.

He shoved the dog off of his shoulder. "If you're not here to take my place then get the hell out. I have enough brats to deal with — Donati parry you stupid bastard, not dance away like a dead broad!" He picked up a rock, throwing it at the whimpering brat's thigh to shove him forward. "Pick it up, ladies! For each stroke you miss you get fifty more drills!" They all grumbled and groaned. He had half a mind to throw em all over his knee and tan their hides. If Augustus didn't hold him back that is.

"Calm down, old friend. You're going to give yourself a heart attack by the time you're done with this."

"Hah, then let this fucking thing break. Would finally get me out of this, shithole." Enzo leaned back against the stone wall behind him. At least there were walls around the training grounds in the battlements. If he had to let the public see the sorry excuses they had for protection, the center of the city would have fallen a long time ago.

"That's no way to look at things. Imagine all the ladies who would flock to the grizzled old captain of Erice-!"

"What are you doing here, Vargas?" Enzo interrupted. "You're supposed to be in retirement in the Favignana Fields, sleeping with whores and laughing at the people who actually do all the work."

Augustus put his hands up in surrender, "I wasn't the one who agreed to follow the summons, old friend." The captain glared at him. "Okay, okay I'm not here to bother you. Just wanted to pick up your recruit and my boarder." He walked over and leaned against the wall next to the old veteran. The retired man's normally dull-looking (you could see the idiocy from a mile away) eyes sharpened to focus on the batch of training soldiers — particularly on one. Amongst all the recruits, threw was one that hadn't been yelled at. Yet.

"Men — at ease! Return to your stations and go to your squads. Laterza — you come here!" One man, still wearing his helmet, walked on over. The brat saluted his captain.

"Captain Nicolosi, sir, you needed me?" He didn't take off his helmet yet, eyeing the captain uneasily. Che. Brat was at least aware, Enzo would give him that.

"Your keeper is here. I'll give you pansies a few minutes to chat and then it's back to drills. So don't think you're getting out of this one, boy." Enzo shoved past the young recruit, contenting himself with screaming at those lagging behind. Before the trio left, he yelled an order. "The brat's still got training to do, Vargas! But the guard will take that shitty excuse for a soldier."

"Nice to hear, my dear old dog-!" Vargas ducked to avoid the other knife sent flying towards his head.

Missed again.

Damn that man. Enzo turned his attention back to the recruits, trying to get the man's idiotic face out of his mind. He didn't know what Vargas was planning but he didn't want to know. He'd had enough of his schemes. He'd be willing to turn a blind eye for now though but…who knows how long that'd last?

Enzo pulled out his flask and drank deeply. He scoffed quietly to himself, "Che…bringing in insurgents…fucking bastard's lost his mind."

…

* * *

...

Augustus, as was custom, slapped the soldier hard on the back, "Leone! How has the training come along? Need a new spear? How about some more oranges-?"

"What is it that you need, sir?" The soldier brushed away the man's hand. The old man had a bad tendency to ramble and get off task.

"It's not what I need so much as what I want as what Maria wants." The man stepped away to reveal a small hooded figure. The soldier's hands twitched and his lips turned upward. Before he could step forward, the old man placed a hand against his chest. He leaned forward, "Don't get any funny ideas, boy. I'll be watching." There was a dangerous flash in the elderly man's eyes before it disappeared. "Go on, my grandson here just wanted to bless you before you get your ass kicked by old Enzo there." He walked away, calling out to the captain, "Hey, leave some of them for me. I want to help too — Nicolosi!"

"Fuck off, Vargas! And that's Captain Nicolosi to you!"

Leone Laterza pulled young 'Feliciano' aside, away from the training grounds and towards the opening beneath the stairs going to the battlements. He took a quick look around, making sure no one could see them, before talking.

"L-…How are you Feli? I hope you've recovered from your illness." His eyes darted to and fro, ensuring no one was watching. Most of the men were either in the training grounds or sleeping on the battlements. But one could never be too sure.

"Just peachy. Come here already, you bastard." The short Italian then paused, before quickly adding, "B-But don't get the wrong idea, got it? I'm only doing this once!" Hesitantly, thin arms wrapped around his neck. They hugged for a short moment before breaking away. The young man pulled down his scarf and sighed. His hazel eyes flashing for a moment before relaxing. "You're sure they haven't found out anything?"

"No. Trapani hasn't been my target in a long time. And even then they never got a good look of my face. Most have probably forgotten it by now." He pulled of his helmet, shaking away the sweat. 'Leone' ran a hand through his hair, feeling a little strange when his fingers stopped short. That was going to take some getting used to. "A pity I had to cut the hair though. I was pretty fond of that ponytail."

"Che, it was disgusting anyway. You'd be sweating like pig if you still had it."

"Aw, Lovi-…_mi querido_ I know you liked it too. But don't worry, I'll grow it out again just for you." He pulled away the scarf to poke at the other's cheek. 'Feliciano' slapped the hand away irritably.

"But your stupid voice hasn't changed one bit!" The young Italian huffed and crossed his arms. "So nothing new yet? Aside from a big ass, stone wall of a German."

The recruit chuckled a bit. "Now, now, there's no need to make fun of Luddy like that."

The little herbalist scowled. "Don't remind me of that either. If I had the chance, I would punch that bastard into next month!" The pirate sighed. It seemed there was just no way for the young man to accept Ludwig. At least not yet.

He decided to move the topic away from murdering his best engineer, "Turns out a few of my crew are taking refuge here. At least — I _think_ some of them are. Either way, we'll need all the men we can get if we want to sail out of here alive." He pulled the smaller man into an embrace. He didn't resist for once. "But I promise we'll get through this. Just…hold on for a little longer." He squeezed the hooded man tightly to his chest. "We're so close…the sea is just a few yards away."

"Yeah, and so are the cannons." But Lovino sighed and leaned his head against the man's chest. "Antonio…be careful."

The pirate smiled and tapped their foreheads together. "_Si, si,_ my dearest _tomate_."

He got a slap for that. The herbalist could give Roderich a run for his money with that kind of hit. "Bastard, don't call me that!"

"But Lovi!"

"Don't call me that either - you're going to get us caught you idiot!" The young herbalist tried to pry himself out of the man's hands, but he wouldn't budge.

"Can't I just hold you — for a little longer?" He tried to do the puppy eyes. Lovino smacked him hard on the forehead.

"No — now let go and get back to work!" the shorter male hissed. When they finally pulled apart, the Italian turned around to clean up the soldier's appearance, brushing his hair and brushing imaginary dust off of his shirt, "You can't let them find out. Just…just snag the papers and we'll be out of here okay? Not any longer than that! If you get in trouble remember the plan…"

"Lovino." Antonio grabbed the herbalist's shaking hands. He looked the shorter man in the eyes. "I'll be fine, I promise." He brushed the other's cheek, "I'll be back tonight, okay?" His love didn't answer, only squeezing the Spaniard's hands back.

The short Italian closed his eyes, sighing tiredly. "Just…just don't do anything stupid, you hear me, bastard?"

Antonio smiled. "Of course, my lovely Maria. You have my word."

Lovino twitched, "Bastard…I'm going to kill you!"

…

* * *

**A/N: I bet you're super confused. Like the entire time you were probably all, "WHAT THE SHIT IS HAPPENING" and all "WHAT THE SHIT IS THIS" and "YOU MAKE ME WAIT AND YOU GIVE ME THIS CRAP?" Fear not. All will be made clear. Eventually. Hopefully. Plus, plugging holes. Also, considers re-writing other chapters so they're clearer. Meh. Get to it later.**

**So love this, hate this - go off and hunt me down to make me write something better. I don't know. You tell me. Review or fav or follow or whatever you want**

**Yeah. I know I'm an asshole. But while I was gone I got reviews and love. To all you anon people: TheWeirdGirl, Average Bimbo, Platinum and 2 Guests, as well as user people: .5, LinkyOkumura37, TheAwesomeMe128, scarletnight72, y'all reviewed while I was away and I love you. As well as those who still bothered to read, favorite and follow this while I was away for a while, I give you a heart. Like a ventricle for each of you or something. You sick cannibals.**

**But seriously, love you guys. PEACE.**

**Edit: P.S. Before you guys freak out, Enzo Nicolosi, Piero de Luca, Rocci (why would you care about him, I don't even care about him but I'll put it here anyway), and Magdelene are OCs. Don't worry about it. **

**Also for Mapple Syrup: Como cabras - I eat goats. This person told me about that. I am proud to have used it. **


	14. INTERMISSION

**A/N: You know how I said things would become clearer? They're not. Nope. Next chapter it is then. But you may try as you like to decipher what everyone's planning right now. They've got a plan. THEY'RE THE MANS WITH THE PLAAAAANNNSSS. This is more of an intermission than anything. Haha..ahaha...hah... Yeah I know you want to kill me. **

**Disclaimer: Because I haven't done this in a while. APH! = not mine **

* * *

**Chapter 14: A Plan Half-Formed **

To be completely truthful, Feliciano Vargas really was sick. At the moment, he was coughing up a storm in his room, trying to swallow whatever nasty concoction that his brother…his _female friend_. had made especially for him. As nice as peppermint and elderberry tea sounded, it was ground into one of the nastiest things the young man had ever tasted, as he was quick to point out. "Ve…it's so…gross!" he complained, wanting to spit it out. Or fill it with sugar. Sugar was nice.

"It's not supposed to taste good, you idiot! Just swallow it down fast so you don't have to taste all of it." The herbalist went back to grumbling to him…_herself _in the corner. Probably making more. He gagged at the thought of having to drink more than this. He looked down into the cup, filled with a brown murky liquid. He shuddered before promptly plugging his nose and tipping the contents into his mouth.

And after miraculously not vomiting whatever it was he was being fed, he laid himself back into bed with an audible plop. "Ve…I can't wait to get out of bed…being sick is s-so horrible!" he sighed, curling up onto the bed.

"Yeah, yeah, a few more days of actual rest and you'll be spitting rainbows and sunshine," the herbalist snapped. He…_She_ was always annoyed. He wished that his…_female friend_ would smile a bit more. Though with all that had happened, he shouldn't be pushy. Lovi— _Maria_ had gone through a lot of hardships, especially these past few weeks. He rolled over in bed, sitting up to look out the window. The Favignana Fields were a beautiful place to stay, filled with flowing wheat that bent along with the wind. Like the sea. There were no huge buildings in the way, leaving only blue open skies. Such a peaceful place… How could anyone prefer the crowded streets in Trapani's center he didn't know.

It was just so heavenly here, so much more quiet and safe than those places. He'd heard of many scary things happening in Trapani lately. Thugs were pouring in again with alarming intensity and the guards had been more…what was the word again? Indolent.

Yes, he was worried for this town's integrity. He certainly didn't want it to revert to the cesspool of the past. Too many horrible memories. So he put his hands together and gave a short prayer.

_Thank you for protecting us for so long and bringing Lovi back to us safely. But I hope you can continue protecting us and this town…just a little bit longer. And…And maybe if you could tell Father Nunzio to stop hunting—_

"Feliciano, close the window!" The aforementioned man jumped at the sharp reprimand and quickly did as he was told. He muttered a short 'thanks' again in his mind before silently closing his private pleas. Immediately afterwards, the young herbalist stomped over and closed the curtains. They were pale white and a little see-through, but if it made Lovi— _Maria _(he really ought to get used to that name) more comfortable then he wouldn't say anything. "Keep the windows and curtains shut when I'm in, idiot. Do you _want_ to get burned for heresy?"

"N-no…"

"Then shut up and lie down like a good patient!"

"Okay!" he squeaked and dropped down onto the mattress. Without saying more, 'Maria' pulled up the covers and tucked Feliciano in like when they were kids. 'Maria' then went back to 'her' corner, cleaning up whatever material 'she' left out earlier. He watched as 'she' picked up several bags of ground up herbs, the pungent smell wafting over to him and making his nose twitch. He thought he could detect a bit of rosemary and pieces of…tomatoes? Oh how he wished to eat them again! It was so boring eating only hot gruel or porridge.

"U-um…Lovi—er—Maria—"

"Just call me Lovino already, idiot. I don't want to be called that when we're at home," the herbalist said sharply.

"V-Ve, r-really? I can just call you…?"

"If you weren't sick, I would have punched you. But even 'Lovi' is better than pretending to be a fucking girl," he grudgingly admitted. His brother dropped down into a stool next to the little priest's bedside. "Do you still feel tired? Anything different? Vomiting or..?"

"Nope! My _fratello_ is a really good nurse, so of course I'm feeling better," Feliciano replied happily, seeing as the other didn't seem too mad. At least, not too mad _at him._

"I-Idiot!" the other blustered, turning pink from the compliment. "L-Look, I'm telling you if you feel really sick or bad or anything tell me. I'll make something else—"

"Like pasta?" he cut in excitedly.

"No! Dumbass, I mean remedies — elixirs, medicine! Damn it, have you filled your brain with pasta or something?" His brother smacked his head, as if to check. Feliciano giggled.

"Sorry, _fratello_, I just…I just miss having your pasta, ve…" He sighed dreamily, imagining the dish in front of him now.

"My pasta's shit and you know it," his brother scoffed, turning away to scratch at his cheek in embarrassment. His brother was also really cute. He didn't get why so many people seemed to think otherwise. It made him a bit sad really. Just because…just because his brother was a witch didn't mean he was heartless. Just a bit prickly. "The fever must be making you more stupid than usual. If you don't go to sleep now, you're going to be an even bigger dumbass." His voice was far gentler than his words.

"But I don't want to go to sleep yet…" he whined. "Can you tell me a story first, Lovi…like we did when we were kids!"

"Wha-? You're not five, you're eighteen. Why don't you start acting like it?"

"I want a story, veeee," he whined again.

Lovino pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, "Spoiled brat…Fine. Fine! If it'll make you shut up and sleep already!"

"Yay!"

And he was told a wonderful, wonderful story. Something having to do with witches and dragons and whatnot.

Feliciano was a little too feverish to remember all of it, but he was sure it was wonderful. Everything just seemed wonderful nowadays. Sure his brother had to hide in the house still, but being able to see his face every day, no matter how much he scowled or yelled at him, was a blessing in itself. And no one had found out yet — no one had suspected, not even when they asked (very politely if he might add) if he or _Nonno _had any idea where Lovino might have gone.

They were safe. _Lovino _was safe. And he had never been more grateful.

…

* * *

…

When the little priest finally fell asleep, the young herbalist left the room. He leaned against the door and slid to the ground. This entire week had been…a little more emotionally exhausting than he cared to admit. So much had changed. No more of those wide, open streets or small, sprawling homes that doubled as stores and houses. No more of those short planks of wood and little rowboats or skippers. And there was no more of the little hut on the hill with the pretty garden and the kind medicine man and his family…

Now it was just cramped streets and tall looming buildings and guards on every corner and faces he didn't recognize. And faces he wished he didn't recognize.

On top of all that, replacing the hut on the hill was the rising spires of the cathedral, white and shining on the horizon, ever present and visible even here on the outskirts of the city in Favignana Fields.

Funny how for him, Trapani was worse than ever before.

He walked out to the back of the cottage, deciding a bit of air would do him good. Better than sitting around and moping about that stupid building in the background. Why couldn't they spend all that money making that monstrosity on something else? Like actually helping people. No? Too outrageous? Lovino stepped outside, a loud whinny breaking him out of his thoughts.

"Gah, come back here! Wait a second-!"

The sun was already setting, but in the distance, he could make out the silhouette of a certain man trying to tame a certain, unruly horse. And how could he miss all that yelling and whinnying in the background?

"What an idiot…" he grumbled to himself, trying not to smile as he sat down at the steps and watched.

"_Are you not going to help him?" _the pot of lavender sitting on the ground asked him.

"Nah, it's his fault anyway. Idiot's too stubborn for his own good."

"_But what if he breaks a stem er—bone, Lovino?" _

"Then he's a dumbass."

"_Are you not helping, Lovino, because you wish for him to say home a little longer in getting hurt?"_

The young man choked on his own spit, hacking and then spluttering, "N-no! Why the hell would I want that idiot to stay? And what kind of morbid thought is that? Shit, I'm not like that!"

The lavender shrunk back a bit, embarrassed, _"It was only a suggestion. But I suppose you are much too honest to think of something so deceitful."_

"Che, whatever," the herbalist scoffed, turning pink.

The lavender then added, _"But is it not prudent to spend time with the one you will miss?"_

Lovino turned red, "S-shut up!" And thankfully the plant stayed quiet, though the words kept repeating over and over until… "Fine, I get it alright? I'm going, happy?!" he snapped, looking rather foolish yelling at innocent little pot of purple lavender.

Scoffing, the young man eventually got up and gingerly made his way through the waist high grasses. He didn't really understand half of what they were saying, but most of it was idiotic rambling, the most intelligent being, "Wheeeeeeee, I'm soooo taaaaall and I'm swaaaaaying!" Lovino had never heard a drunk man speak before, but he was pretty sure this was as close to the real thing as he could get. Completely slurred and high-pitched and absolutely ridiculous.

It was a good thing that the wheat only started talking when it was especially windy. If he had to hear, "I'M FLYING, MA!" all day he was pretty sure he'd go insane. Or commit wheat genocide. Whichever came first.

But other than the drunken cries of wheat and the yells of a stubborn dumbass being thrown of a horse, it was rather peaceful here in the fields. He could almost imagine, if he squinted and looked out to the sea, that this was all there was. Just wheat and the sky. No Trapani. No church. _No people._ Just him.

"Ow! _Mierda,_ Neri settle down — whoa!"

Or just him plus one idiot.

He pushed past the wheat (they all started giggling for some stupid reason) and whistled to the horse himself. "Neri! Come here, girl!" Immediately, she threw off her rider. Lovino winced when he heard the guy hit the ground but greeted the horse with open arms. "There you are girl, did the big bad pirate try to ride you?"

The horse, as if she understood him, snorted and butted her head against him. "Yeah, I know. He's a real dumbass for thinking that he could get on _you_ and get away with it. You're the best of the best, only the greatest riders are allowed to get on right?" She flicked her mane and dropped her head against his shoulder. He rested both arms around her neck, brushing her mane with his fingers.

She was a beautiful horse, thick black mane and dark brown coat. And for some odd reason, she seemed to like Lovino, grumpy old Lovino, more than the cheerful idiot currently lying on the ground. Funny how that worked.

"Why don't you go back to the stables? Pretty sure the old man's back by now to give you a nice brushing down." Neri whinnied again and trotted off towards the back of the cottage. Did he mention how smart she was? Definitely a kindred spirit.

He turned away from the cottage and walked through to a broken patch of wheat, where Antonio was lying on the ground, groaning. The Italian smirked, crouching down to flick the man's forehead. "Keeling over already? Didn't I tell you that you couldn't do it?"

The man opened his eyes and smiled, as if he hadn't just been flung several feet into the air and dropped onto the ground for probably the fourth time today. "Ah, well I just couldn't help myself. When I see a challenge, I take it," Antonio confessed, wearing a sheepish grin on his face. His clothes were a mess, already covered in grain and ripped in a few places from being thrown about so much. Sometimes, Lovino had to remind himself that this guy was actually twenty-two, not a careless teenager.

"Stupid bastard," he scoffed. "Next time I'll bring flowers when Neri breaks your head open."

He laughed, "How thoughtful, Lovi. And will there be mourners for my death at the hands of your terrible horse?"

"Nobody but me. And that's just to spit on your grave," he deadpanned.

Antonio didn't even miss a beat, countering smoothly, "Then that's all I need then. I'll die happy knowing that you're there at least." The man smiled at Lovino winningly and against his very will, he allowed the tiniest ghost of a smile to form. Only for a second. Then it was back to his usual frown.

"You're a dumbass!" he concluded, finding nothing better to say as he sat down on the ground beside him. "I swear one day you'll start talking like…like…wheat! Stupid little fuckers…"

Antonio just laughed again, a pleasant sound that helped loosen that knot in his chest just a little bit. "No need to be so cruel — after all they do bring bread to the table."

"Well, just because I need 'em doesn't mean I have to like them," the herbalist scowled, giving a particularly obnoxious group of grain a dark glare. They only started laughing even harder. "I swear I'm going to go crazy. I'd rather listen to you blabber and have the potato bastard here instead of them." He let out a long sigh and stared up at the sky. The clouds drifted lazily by. Lucky little things, as if he could ever find time to be so idle nowadays.

Antonio rolled onto his side, brushing a stray hair away from Lovino's face. The herbalist let him, only scowling a bit more at the sky in response. "Is there something wrong, _mi tomate? _Besides, I thought you said you said you _liked_ wheat."

"That was yesterday! Today, they're annoying," he snapped, stubbornly crossing his arms. "How's Enzo?" he asked, hoping he didn't sound too worried.

Nevertheless, Antonio caught on. Perceptive bastard. "Aw, are you worried about me, my cute little tomato?" He propped himself up on one hand, smiling down at him with an all-knowing grin. The herbalist wasn't sure if he wanted to punch him or hug him.

"…Yes." He puffed his cheeks and looked away, feeling like a total idiot. It did make him feel a little better though to peek over and see the Spaniard coughing and scratching his cheek, slightly pink from embarrassment.

"Oh, you're…you're so forward today Lovi," he muttered before recovering easily and dampening Lovino's tiny victory. "Well…Enzo's been fine. He's loud, and getting louder every day. Nothing to worry about. But I'm sure you want to hear how _I__'__m_ coping with him right?"

"Just…just shut up," he mumbled.

Ignoring that, Antonio continued, "He's been driving the entire unit into the ground. Even I'm feeling a little bit sore! Never had formal training before — I guess it's…enlightening. Even if it does feel a little silly. Those helmets are really hard to deal with, sometimes I feel like my brain's slowly melting from the heat in it!"

"Che, as if you had any brains to begin with. I wouldn't worry too much."

"Glad to see you're so concerned for me, _mi amorcito~!__" _He leaned in and kissed Lovino on the cheek.

Immediately, the young Italian shoved the Spaniard away and made a show of wiping his cheek clean. He groaned, "Keep your hands off. And dammit, control yourself! Those squiggles are starting to back."

"Squiggles?"

"Yes, your fucking…just — never mind. You probably wouldn't remember what I have to say anyway."

"Of course I'd remember. I remember everything you ever say, Lovino." And he said it with such a serious expression, Lovino could almost believe it.

"That's really fucking creepy. You're creepy."

"Well, you wanted to be serious and I am." Antonio sat up, poking him on the forehead. "You, on the other hand, ought to be less serious. You'll get little wrinkle lines all over your face if you worry so much, Lovi," he teased.

Lovino swatted the hand away irritably. "Get your hands away, bastard!" He sighed, "What were we even talking about anyway? You're so damn distracting…"

Antonio passed him a concerned glance, before chuckling quietly to himself. "That's the first time you complimented me, you're really making me blush you know~!" he said, wearing that stupidly happy grin. When Lovino didn't rise to the bait, he dropped the teasing. "Everything's starting tomorrow huh? I guess that means tomorrow, from now on, I'll be Leone and you'll be Maria." He laughed a bit, "Well you're certainly pretty enough to be a girl, so I'm sure it'll be fine."

The herbalist punched him hard on the shoulder. "Damn it, stop making fun of me! 'Sides, I'm supposed to pretend to have leprosy. And why the hell do I have to be the girl anyway? You should have been the girl — _you_ had the long hair."

"Well, since we (_Nonno)_ all agreed that I'm a 'no-good pirate', I'm supposed to do all the dangerous, sneaky stuff. Punishment for forgery is losing both your hands, and how could I put my lovely Maria in that kind of danger?" Another hard punch to the shoulder. "But I guess you'll have your hands full anyway won't you?"

The way he said it sounded…almost frustrated. This wasn't the first time the pirate pushed Lovino into the 'damsel-in-distress' title and it wouldn't be the last. So the herbalist rolled his eyes, "Are you kidding me? I'll be napping in an apple shop, easiest job ever. But you…you're-" He couldn't quite make out the words, a lump forming in his throat.

"I'll be running around with a bunch of clueless soldiers who can't tell the difference between a sword and a helmet. I've done risky missions before, this should be no different. I'll take the sanctions, the ship licenses, everything. Then we'll all be out of here and I'll be back to kiss your pretty lips before you know it." He made it sound so easy. As if breaking into garrisons filled with sword happy soldiers and power crazy priests were something one did every day.

"I am going to punch you," he scowled, "I am going to punch you and you're going to wish you were never born," the herbalist deadpanned. "Why do I even bother? You're a goddamn cockroach, like hell you're gonna die that easily."

"_Muchas gracias_, Lovi. Your words are like a thousand blessings upon my soul. Who needs a priest when I've got you?"

He curled his lips into a bitter smile. "If you want to be damned to hell then be my guest. Though to tell the truth we're all probably fucked already."

"Don't be such a downer, Lovi. I've got it all handled, promise." He stood up, brushing off the wheat and lending the herbalist a hand. "We've gotten through a whole lot already, who's to say we can't get through this too?"

Lovino stared. Antonio's hand was covered in scrapes and his palms were still red — probably from the reins biting into his hands. He grabbed the man's arm instead and pulled himself up. "It's not called being a downer, it's called being realistic. Why can't you just let me worry in peace? Stupid jerk."

Antonio just gave him another hopeless smile and ran the pad of his thumb gently over the bandages on Lovino's hand. Although the wound was finally closing, it was sure to leave a bad scar. "Trust me, everything's going to work out. We'll make it through… You trust me, right?"

"Yes…unfortunately." Despite himself, he let the tiniest smile show on his face. "But I'm never going to trust you with horses. You'd probably kill the both of us trying to ride one."

"Your faith never ceases to astonish me, Lovi," he chuckled, kissing the back of the herbalist's hand before leading them both back to the cottage. _We__'__ll be alright._ It wasn't much. Hell, they both knew that with all the things that could possibly go wrong — they probably wouldn't be.

But sitting at the dinner table and listening to Antonio laugh, it was hard, even for him, to stay worried for too long.

…

* * *

…

The path was worn and beaten. It was nearly overgrown with brambles and roots, several times they nearly tripped from running too fast. Branches kept swatting at them — or at least, swatting at him. If he ever stopped to look back, it was as if the trees moved back a bit to let Lovino pass unharmed. It was a little comforting to see that he was at least being spared from a few more scrapes. Although judging by his appearance, another hit and Lovino would probably collapse.

"Just a little farther, we're almost out of here…" He squeezed that fragile hand again to reassure him.

All he got in a reply was a breathless, "Yeah, fine…"

It was a rather foreboding sign to speak to Lovino and not hear him curse or argue. _He__'__s exhausted. He won__'__t last much longer._ He was about to slow down, drop their pace to something more manageable— A muffled explosion nearly sent him rolling down the hill as Lovino tripped and smacked into his back.

"Shit! Sorry, damn it I…damn it!" he cursed, looking like he was trying hard not to cry and holding onto Antonio like a lifeline. He didn't let Lovino turn around, keeping a firm grim on his shoulders. Again, that pang of guilt. His eyes flickered to the forest behind them. It was a bit eerie how the tree bark looked like faces. Screaming faces. And the red glow beyond the tree line wasn't any less foreboding.

"Let's keep moving and we'll be okay," he said softly, taking the herbalist's one good hand in his. "We can do this. We'll be okay." Some part of him wondered if he was reassuring himself more than Lovino.

They kept moving of course, it wasn't as if they had any other choice. Stopping would have gotten them caught and turning back would have been sure suicide at this point. All they could do was keep walking forward and hope that there wasn't some angry mob waiting for them on the other side. Just before the broke through the forest, Antonio stopped and pulled the two of them aside into the bushes.

Peering out through the leaves, he could see that the rest of the path diverged and spread out to large open fields, dotted with darkened buildings. Just beyond the fields, farther along the main path, was a great black mass, the most prominent among them being a huge grey building rising above the entire mess itself. Trapani. It was bigger than he thought it would be. All the better he supposed, with more places to hide in.

But at this time of night, with no crowd to hide in, to walk along the main path was to be caught. The chances of the hunters catching up to them and pursuing them along the path was an uncomfortable possibility. What with the way they were now, they certainly wouldn't be able to sprint fast enough to find shelter.

"Hey…I think I heard something about the old man hiding out in the Favignana Fields. He could be—he could be out here," he muttered. "But I don't really know which one-"

"That's fine. We'll figure it out later and stake them out. But for now, we're going to take a break." He watched as the other's shoulders sagged in relief. "I hope you like sleeping in wheat, Lovino."

"Anything's better than waking up as a piece of firewood. Let's get out of here already. I'm sure that my dumbass _Nonno _is out here on the porch dead drunk or something…" They pulled themselves out and rushed through the open, running through the path.

"When people mean to go for a roll in the hay I don't think they mean this…" Antonio muttered to himself, as they ducked into the waist high grasses.

"I don't give a damn who finds us anymore…" Lovino groaned. "Shit, just punch the daylights out of them for me yeah? Give the bastard a hard…a hard left…for me." He clutched at the injured hand. His hand was bandaged, but the blood was seeping through the cloth.

"Of course," he sighed, sitting down. "I'll keep first watch. If something comes up, I'll wake you and we'll get out of here."

"W-what? No..no way am I going to be the helpless baby…and sleep…" he trailed off, nearly planting his face into the ground had Antonio not caught him. He carefully put the herbalist's head on his lap. Before long he was completely gone. Honestly…how could he have gotten the energy to run straight home like that if he was this exhausted?

Antonio shook his head, his mind reeling from the day's events and still working trying to think of a way out of this mess. First they needed a safe place to stay, then a ship and then a crew. And that wasn't even counting all the bribing and blackmail he'd have to figure out to keep this all quiet. He ran a hand through his hair. "What a mess…I've really got my work cut out for me don't I?" he sighed, laughing quietly despite himself.

The moment he did however, a loud bang made him jolt.

"Who's out there?!" a deep voice boomed. Lovino jolted and Antonio put a hand over his mouth to keep from yelping and giving them both away. "I know you're outsides — mights as well gives yourswelves up!" There was a loud hiccup following that. At least the man was dead drunk.

But instead of staying still, Lovino wriggled out of his grasp and stood up. "Lovino wait-!"

"_Nonno?__"_ he said, sounding more grateful and relieved (and a little bit teary) than afraid.

…_Nonno_? Wait a second— Antonio stood up too. What he saw was a broad-shouldered, middle-aged man, carrying a lantern and what looked to be a half-empty wine bottle. And if anything, he looked more intoxicated and dazed than violent. But there was no way. No way they could have been this incredibly lucky.

"L…Lovino?" The man dropped the bottle, not even caring as it rolled off the steps and spilled all over the ground. For a moment, all they could do was stare at each other and if Antonio was practically reeling.

Deciding that they'd all better go inside, he broke the trance. "So…" he cleared his throat nervously, and saluted the older man, "Er…Nice to meet you, Mr. Lovino's grandfather! I'm Antonio and we really should get moving—"

"You—you're that rake that's flirting with my grandson! Well, I'll have none of it, I won't let you run off with your…schmucky ways…if you're not in it for the rings you can…you can hitch a donkey!" And the man collapsed onto the porch, snoring loudly.

Lovino, seeming to have been revived at the sound of his grandfather, groaned and smacked his forehead. "I don't remember him being this much of a dumbass…" he muttered.

As they walked up to the front porch, hefting up the unconscious old man and dragging him inside, Antonio couldn't help but wonder… If this was all they had, were they really going to be okay?

…

* * *

**A/N: That last section there, if you didn't catch it, is actually taking a step back in time to the day Lovi and Toni escaped after Sadiq burned the cottage (and pretty much a third of the forest) down. They ran and whoopdeedoo deus ex machina. **

**This came out more as another intermission than a step forward in explaining what was happening. Just a glimpse. Plus this was all I could think of. I'm an asshole. I know I am. But thank you anyway if you're reading through this and still want me to write more.**

**..._Do_ you want me to write more? :/ Jk I'll finish this. So many things will happen. So many, many things...This is one of the few moments of peace that'll be left, because I've decided I'm gonna pull no punches. GO BIG OR GO HOME. So thank you again to those who reviewed and followed this while I was away. *heart face* Fear not, am rapidly writing the next one. Hopefully it comes out next week. No promises though. **


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